Electronic sourcing management system

ABSTRACT

An electronic system may be configured to host prospect profiles for a plurality of prospects, host organization profiles for a plurality of organizations, and store an application template for each of the plurality of organizations. The electronic system may be configured to generate an aggregate application that is based on a first one of the plurality of application templates corresponding to a first organization and a second one of the plurality of application templates corresponding to a second organization. In response to a prospect submitting the aggregate application via an interface of the electronic system, the electronic system may be configured to extract data from the aggregate application for upload to a prospect tracking system of the first organization, and extract data from the aggregate application for upload to an prospect tracking system of the second organization

CLAIM OF PRIORITY

This patent application makes reference to, claims priority to and claims benefit from: U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/683,496 entitled “Method and System for Electronic Management of Recruiting” and filed on Aug. 15, 2012; and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/674,258 entitled “Method and System for Electronic Management of Recruiting” and filed on Jul. 20, 2012.

Each of the above-identified applications is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/725,746 which is titled “Method and System for Electronic Management of Recruiting” and was filed on Dec. 21, 2012 is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Aspects of the present application relate to electronic networking. More specifically, to methods and systems for an electronic sourcing management system.

BACKGROUND

Conventional methods and systems for organizations to find prospects and for both prospects and organizations to engage in the sourcing process can be inefficient and ineffective. Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditional approaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, through comparison of such approaches with some aspects of the present method and system set forth in the remainder of this disclosure with reference to the drawings.

BRIEF SUMMARY

Methods and systems are provided for an electronic sourcing management, substantially as illustrated by and/or described in connection with at least one of the figures, as set forth more completely in the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicts an example system for implementing electronic sourcing management.

FIGS. 2A and 2B depict a state diagram illustrating operation of an example sourcing terminal.

FIG. 3A depicts an example sourcing event schedule window displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 3B depicts an example sourcing event detail window displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 3C depicts an example prospect profile window displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 3D depicts an example prospect interactions window displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 3E depicts an example prospect documents window displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 3F depicts an example prospect interactions window displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 3G depicts an example sourcing event wrap-up window displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 4A depicts an example prospect abstract/résumé/CV window displayed by an example sourcing terminal.

FIG. 4B depicts an example prospect assessment overview window displayed by an example sourcing terminal.

FIG. 4C depicts an example prospect completed assessment form window displayed by an example sourcing terminal.

FIG. 4D depicts an example in-progress assessment form window displayed by an example sourcing terminal.

FIG. 4E depicts an example note-taking window displayed by an example sourcing terminal.

FIG. 4F depicts an example interview scheduling windows displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 4G depicts another example interview scheduling window displayed on a sourcing terminal.

FIG. 5A depicts an example public prospect profile window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 5B depicts an example public prospect activity window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 5C depicts an example public prospect projects window provided by an electronic sourcing system.

FIG. 5D depicts an example private prospect home window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 5E depicts an example private prospect discover window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 6A depicts an example public sourcing event profile window provided by an electronic sourcing management system to a third party.

FIG. 6B depicts an example public sourcing event activity window provided by an electronic sourcing management system to a third party.

FIG. 6C depicts an example sourcing event private profile administration window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7A depicts an example public organization profile window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7B depicts an example public organization activity window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7C depicts an example sourcing dashboard window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7D depicts an example sourcer assessment window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7E depicts an example sourcing event assessment window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7F depicts an example sourcing event scheduler window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7G depicts an example requisition management window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7H depicts an example requisition creation window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 7I depicts an example prospect and sourcing event discovery window provided by an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 8 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for matching prospect and organizations via an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 9 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for prospect recommendations via an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 10 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for prospect relationship management via an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 11 depicts an example sourcing management system that houses prospect tracking systems for multiple organizations.

FIG. 12 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for projecting sourcing-related information using an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 13 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for matching prospects and requisitions over multiple organizations.

FIG. 14 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for generating an application in an electronic sourcing management system.

FIG. 15 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for a prospect to concurrently fill out and submit applications to multiple organizations and/or for multiple requisitions.

FIG. 16A depicts a first example interface window for generating an application that can be submitted via the sourcing management system.

FIG. 16B depicts a second example interface window for generating an application that can be submitted via the sourcing management system.

FIG. 17 depicts an example interface window via which a prospect can concurrently fill out and submit applications to multiple organizations and/or for multiple requisitions.

FIG. 18 depicts a flowchart for handling references in an application submitted via the electronic sourcing management system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As utilized herein the terms “circuits” and “circuitry” refer to physical electronic components (i.e. hardware) and any software and/or firmware (“code”) which may configure the hardware, be executed by the hardware, and or otherwise be associated with the hardware. As used herein, for example, a particular processor and memory may comprise a first “circuit” when executing a first one or more lines of code and may comprise a second “circuit” when executing a second one or more lines of code. As utilized herein, “and/or” means any one or more of the items in the list joined by “and/or.” As an example, “x and/or y” means any element of the three-element set {(x), (y), (x, y)}. As another example, “x, y, and/or z” means any element of the seven-element set {(x), (y), (z), (x, y), (x, z), (y, z), (x, y, z)}. As utilized herein, the terms and “module” refer to functions than can be performed by one or more circuits. As utilized herein, the terms “e.g.,” and “for example” set-off lists of one or more non-limiting examples, instances, or illustrations. As utilized herein, “list” is used generically to describe arrangements of data such as lists, matrices, arrays, tables, etc. As utilized herein, a terminal, device, circuit, etc. is “operable” to perform a function whenever the circuitry comprises the necessary hardware and code (if any is necessary) to perform the function, regardless of whether performance of the function is disabled, or not enabled, by some user-configurable setting. As used herein, an “organization” may be, for example, a for-profit company, a not-for-profit company, a professional association, a private membership, a school, and/or the like. As used herein an “opportunity” may be, for example, a position of employment within an organization, an elected position within an organization, an appointed position within an organization, an opportunity to provide and/or receive goods and/or services to an organization (e.g., supplier, distributer, contractor, etc.), an opportunity to receive goods and/or services from an organization, an opportunity to provide goods and/or services to an organization, and/or the like. As used herein, a “prospect” is a person/organization/etc. seeking an opportunity within an organization. As used herein, a “sourcer” is a person/organization/etc. who identifies prospects for opportunities. As used herein a “sourcing event” (simply “event”) may be, for example, a job fair, a membership drive, an exposition, an association fair, an open house event, and/or the like).

FIG. 1 depicts an example system for implementing electronic sourcing management. Referring to FIG. 1, the system comprises prospect terminals 102 a and 102 b, sourcer terminals 128 a and 128 b, and a network 113 to which the prospect terminals 102 and sourcer terminals 128 are connected (and thus a part of). Prospect terminals 102 and sourcer terminals 128 may also be configured to link and/or talk directly to each other (including the memory 108 contained on such prospect terminals 102 and sourcer terminals 128) through a wired, wireless and/or optical link(s) (e.g., via Bluetooth) in the event a network 113 is not accessible. The various links 100 shown may be wired, wireless, and/or optical links.

The network 113 may comprise one or more servers 114 and one or more routers, switches, cables, and/or other network “plumbing.” The server(s) 114 may comprise a processing circuit 120, a memory circuit 122, and a networking circuit 118.

The processing circuit 120 may, for example, comprise one or more single or multi-core central processing units (CPUs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and/or a field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). The processing circuit 120 may be configured to effectuate the operation of the server(s) in which it resides by executing lines of code stored in the corresponding one of the memory circuits 108 a-108 d. The lines of code may include an operating system and one or more applications. Examples of such applications include the database application 124 and the server application 126. One or more of the processes described below in this disclosure may result from such code being executed by the processing circuit 120.

The database application 124 may comprise code for managing sourcing data stored in memory 122 and for generating a user interface via which the data may be stored to memory 122, retrieved from memory 122, organized, searched, and/or otherwise managed. The user interface may, for example, be served to prospect and/or sourcer terminals via the server application 126. For example, database queries generated by the sourcing app 110, the browser 112, and/or the sourcing application 130 may be relayed to the database application 124 via the server application 126 and the results of the queries may be returned to the app 110, the application 130, or the browser 112 via the server application 126. In addition, in the event a network 113 is not available, queries generated by the sourcing app 110, browser 112 or sourcing application 130 may be directly to the memory 108 maintained on other prospect terminals 102 or sourcer terminals 128 to which such sourcing app 110, browser 112 or sourcing application 130 is able to link and/or talk directly without use of a network 113.

The server application 126 may comprise code for performing the functions of a web and/or application server. In this regard, the server(s) 114 running the server application 126 may provide services and/or content to networked client devices, such as terminals 102 a, 102 b, 128 a, and 128 b, via the use of one or more protocols (e.g., HTTP) and/or application programming interfaces (APIs).

The memory circuit 122 may, for example, comprise non-volatile memory, volatile memory, read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), flash memory, magnetic storage, and/or any other suitable memory. The memory circuit 122 may comprise program memory, run-time memory, and mass storage. Program memory may store lines of code executable by the processing circuit 120 to effectuate operation of the operating system and one or more applications. Runtime memory may store data generated and/or used during execution of the OS and/or applications. Mass storage may store any number and/or types of data including prospect profile data, organization profile data, documents, forms, and/or any other type of data generated and/or used during sourcing processes. Data stored in mass storage may be managed via the database application 124.

The networking circuit 118 may comprise, for example one or more network interface cards (NICs) and may be configured to communicate over one or more network links in accordance with one or more network protocols such as, for example, Wi-Fi, LTE, wired Ethernet, DOCSIS, DSL, Fiber Channel Protocol, and/or any other suitable protocol.

Each of the prospect terminals 102 a and 102 b, and each of the sourcer terminals 128 a and 128 b, comprises a respective one of processing circuits 106 a-106 d, a respective one of networking circuits 104 a-104 d, a respective one of user input devices 105 a-105 d, and a respective one of memory circuits 108 a-108 d. Each of the terminals 102 a, 102 b, 128 a, and 128 b may be, for example, a portable terminal such as a desktop PC or a mobile terminal such as a smartphone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, or any other suitable computing device.)

Each of the processing circuits 106 a-106 d may, for example, comprise a single or multi-core central processing unit (CPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), and/or a field programmable gate array (FPGA). Each of the processing circuits 106 a-106 d may be configured to effectuate operation of the terminal in which it resides by executing lines of code stored in the corresponding one of the memory circuits 108 a-108 d. The lines of code may include an operating system and one or more applications. Examples of such applications include the sourcing applications 110 a and 110 b, sourcing applications 130 a and 130 b, and the web browser applications 112 a-112 d. Processes described below in the remainder of this disclosure may be the result of such code being executed by one or more processing circuits 106 a-106 d.

Each of the memory circuits 108 a-108 d may, for example, comprise non-volatile memory, volatile memory, read only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), flash memory, magnetic storage, and/or any other suitable memory. Each of the memory circuits 108 a-108 d may comprise program memory, run-time memory, and mass storage. Program memory may store lines of code executable by the processing circuits 106 a-106 d to effectuate operation of the operating system and one or more applications. Runtime memory may store data generated and/or used during execution of the OS and/or applications. Mass storage may store any number and/or types of data including prospect profile data, organization profile data, documents, forms, and/or any other type of data generated and/or used during sourcing processes, which mass storage may also be accessible by other prospect terminals 102 and/or sourcer terminals 128 if such other prospect terminals 102 and/or sourcer terminals 128 are configured to link and/or talk directly to the applicable prospect terminal 102 or sourcer terminal 128 housing such memory circuit 108 through a wired, wireless and/or optical link(s) (e.g., via Bluetooth).

Each of the networking circuits 104 a-104 d may be configured to communicate over one or more network links in accordance with one or more network protocols such as, for example, Wi-Fi, LTE, wired Ethernet, DOCSIS, DSL, Fiber Channel Protocol, and/or any other suitable protocol.

The input devices 105 a-105 d may comprise, for example, a mouse, a touchpad, a motion sensor, a trackball, a voice recognition device, a keyboard, and/or any other suitable input device, with accompanying circuitry, that enables a user to interact with the respective terminal 102 a, 102 b, 128 a, or 128 b.

Each of the instances 110 a and 110 b of the sourcing application 110 may comprise code that, when executed, results in the performance of one or more of the processes described in this disclosure. The process(es) may include, for example, providing a prospect-side user interface, processing of sourcing data, and/or communications among components of the sourcing system (e.g., via one or more web-based application programming interfaces). The process(es) may be performed by the prospect terminal on which the code is executed, by the server(s) 114, by a sourcer terminal, and/or by a combination thereof.

Each of the instances 130 a and 130 b of the sourcing application 130 may comprise code that, when executed, results in the performance of one or more of the processes described in this disclosure. The process(es) may include, for example, providing an organization-side user interface, processing of sourcing data, and/or communications among components of the sourcing system (e.g., via one or more web-based application programming interfaces). The process(es) may be performed by the sourcer terminal on which the code is executed, by the server(s) 114, by a prospect terminal, and/or by a combination thereof.

Each of the instances 112 a-112 d of the web-browser application 112 may comprise code that, when executed, enables accessing a web-based interface served by the server(s) 114. For example, the server(s) 114 may serve an HTML and/or scripting language-based website that is accessible via the web-browser application 112. Communications between the web-browser 112 and the server(s) 114 may result in the performance of one or more of the processes described in this disclosure. The process(es) may include, for example, providing an organization-side user interface, providing a prospect-side user interface, processing of sourcing data, and/or communications among components of the sourcing system (e.g., via one or more web-based application programming interfaces). The process(es) may comprise client-side processes (e.g., processes performed on the prospect or sourcer terminal by the web-browser 112 and/or its “plug-ins”) and/or server-side processes (e.g., processes performed on the server(s) 114 by the server application 126).

FIGS. 2A and 2B depict a state diagram illustrating operation of an example sourcing terminal. For ease and clarity of description, the state diagram is described in the context of a sourcer (“Sourcer”) acting on behalf of an organization (“Organization”) using the terminal 128 a at a sourcing event. Although particular windows are described as possessing particular interface elements for navigating to particular other windows, the sequence in which the various states are accessible, the interface elements and/or information available in any particular state, and the number of states are not limited to example implementations disclosed herein.

The sourcing terminal 128 a may initialize to a state 202 in which a login window is displayed. If Sourcer enters valid login credentials then the state of the terminal 128 b changes to a state 204 in which a “schedule” window is displayed. The schedule window may be customized to the logged-in sourcer. For example, rather than displaying all events that Sourcer's Organization has scheduled, it may only display a subset of those events that Sourcer is scheduled to attend. An example “schedule” window is described below with reference to FIG. 3A.

While in the state 204, Sourcer may interact (e.g., by touching, clicking, typing in, etc.) with one or more interface elements (e.g., buttons, sliders, drop-down menus, etc.) of the schedule window to navigate to a state 206 in which a map function of the terminal 128 a is launched. In the state 206, Sourcer may, for example, view street-level maps and/or indoor maps of sourcing events.

While in the state 204, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the schedule window to navigate to a state 208 in which a “resources” (or “tools”) window is displayed. The resources window may provide, for example, documents (e.g., digitally executable waivers, confidentiality agreements, etc.), media (e.g., Organization's promotional and/or orientation videos), and/or other information which Sourcer may need or desire to access during the sourcing event. For example, a link to a document (e.g., a confidentiality agreement, waiver, etc.) requiring a prospect's signature may be provided in the resources window and, upon interacting with the link, the document may be brought up for the prospect to review and for the prospect to digitally sign (e.g., write a signature with a stylus on a touchscreen, provide a finger print via an optical reader, take a picture of his/her face, type in a private-key, etc.). The documents, media, and/or other resources available may be specific to Organization, Sourcer, and/or the particular sourcing event. That is, different resources may be available depending on the organization, the sourcing event, and/or the sourcer logged-in to the terminal 128 a.

While in the state 204, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the schedule window to navigate to the state 212 in which an “event wrap-up” window is displayed. An example sourcing event wrap-up window is described below with reference to FIG. 3G.

While in the state 204, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the schedule window to navigate to the state 214 in which an “event detail” window is displayed. An example event detail window is described below with reference to FIG. 3B.

While in the state 204, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the schedule window to navigate to state 216 in which a “reminders” window is displayed. The reminders window may display a task list and/or calendar view of upcoming sourcing events, sourcing-related appointments, sourcing-related deadlines, etc. Via interface elements of the reminders window, Sourcer may be enabled to view, sort, filter, set, clear, and/or otherwise manage reminders.

While in the state 204, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the schedule window to navigate to state 218 in which an “interactions list” window may be displayed. An example interactions list window is described below with reference to FIG. 3F.

While in the state 212, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the wrap-up window to navigate to state 210 in which an “event feedback” window is displayed. The event feedback window may provide fillable forms, surveys, and/or other user interface elements for collecting information about the sourcing event from the sourcers who attended the event. Such information may be stored (e.g., in memory 108 and/or memory 122) for later generating various event and/or sourcing-related metrics (e.g., to assess Sourcer performance, cost-effectiveness of sourcing processes, etc.)

While in the state 212, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the wrap-up window to navigate to state 220 in which an “expense report” window is displayed. The expense report window may provide fillable forms and/or other user interface elements for collecting expense reports to enable reimbursement as well analysis and management of sourcing budgets, cost-effectiveness, etc.

While in the state 214, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the event detail window to navigate to state 232 in which a “prospect list” window is displayed. An example prospect list window is described below with reference to FIGS. 4A and 4B.

While in the state 214, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the event detail window to navigate to state 222 in which a prospect profile window is displayed. An example prospect profile window is described below with reference to FIG. 3C.

While in the state 218, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the interactions list window to navigate to state 228 in which an “interaction details” window is displayed. Interface elements of the interactions detail window may enable Sourcer to view and/or edit (e.g., add contact information, a photo, type a note, etc.) past interactions with one or more people (e.g., prospects, other sourcers, organization members/employees, etc.).

While in the state 222, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the prospect profile window to navigate to state 224 in which a “prospect documents” window is displayed. An example prospect documents window is described below with reference to FIG. 3E.

While in the state 222, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the prospect profile window to navigate to state 226 in which a “prospect interactions” window is displayed. An example prospect interactions window is described below with reference to FIG. 3D.

While in the state 232, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the prospect list window to navigate to state 230 in which a prospect scan/search window is displayed. While in state 230, the terminal 128 a may be configured to scan or otherwise digitally or electronically accept (e.g., optically read a QR code, wirelessly read an RFID tag, and/or receive a wireless signature) a prospect terminal (e.g., terminal 102 a) to recover a unique identifier, and then search a database of prospects (e.g., stored in memory 108 (whether on such terminal 128 a or on any other prospect terminal 102 or sourcer terminal 128 which is configured to link and/or talk directly to the applicable terminal 128 a through a wired, wireless and/or optical link(s) (e.g., via Bluetooth) and/or memory 122) for a prospect associated with the unique identifier. Additionally or alternatively, Sourcer can manually enter prospect information and search for a database record matching the entered information. If a matching record is found, the state of the terminal 128 a proceeds to state 236 in which a “prospect abstract/résumé/CV window” is displayed, but if no matching record is found, the state of the terminal returns to state 232.

While in the state 232, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the prospect list window to manually select a prospect (“Prospect”) from the list. Upon selection of Prospect, the state of the terminal 128 a proceeds to state 236 in which a “prospect abstract/résumé/CV window” is displayed. An example prospect abstract/résumé/CV window is described below with reference to FIG. 4A.

While in the state 232, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the prospect list window to navigate to state 234 in which an “add prospect” window is displayed. Interface elements of the add prospect window may enable entering prospect information to add a new prospect to the list of prospect. Upon completion of entering the prospect information, the state of the terminal 128 a may return to the state 232.

While in the state 236, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the abstract/résumé/CV window to navigate to state 240 in which an “abstract/résumé/CV capture/add” window is displayed. While in the state 240, the Sourcer may be enabled to obtain or capture an electronic copy of Prospect's abstract/résumé/CV and save the abstaract/résumé/CV to memory such that it is associated with Prospect in memory. The abstract/résumé/CV may be obtained or captured by, for example, scanning a paper copy, taking a photo of a paper copy, receiving it via a wired or wireless connection to a prospects terminal, and/or downloading it from the server(s) 114 and/or another web-host.

While in the state 236, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the abstract/résumé/CV window to navigate to state 238 in which a “schedule interview(s)” window is displayed. Example schedule interview windows are described below with reference to FIGS. 4F and 4G.

While in the state 236, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the abstract/résumé/CV window to navigate to state 244 in which a “scratchpad” window is displayed. An example scratchpad window is described below with reference to FIG. 4E.

While in the state 236, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the abstract/résumé/CV window to navigate to state 242 in which an “assessments list” window is displayed. An example assessments list window is described below with reference to FIG. 4B.

While in the state 242, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the abstract/résumé/CV window to navigate to state 248 in which a “view assessment detail” window is displayed. An example view assessment detail window is described below with reference to FIG. 4C.

While in the state 242, Sourcer may interact with one or more interface elements of the abstract/résumé/CV window to navigate to state 248 in which a “fill assessment” window is displayed. An example fill assessment window is described below with reference to FIG. 4D.

FIG. 3A depicts an example event schedule window displayed on a sourcer terminal. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed the event schedule window 300 is being displayed on the terminal 128 a.

The interface elements 310, 311, 312, and 313 enable navigating between the scheduling window (FIG. 3A), a map window, an interactions list window (FIG. 3F), and a resources window.

Selection of the interface element 303 (e.g., as a result of being clicked with a mouse or tapped on a touchscreen) may bring up a reminders window. The reminders window may, in turn, display a task list and/or calendar view of upcoming sourcing events, sourcing-related appointments, sourcing-related deadlines, etc., and may enable viewing, sorting, filtering, setting, clearing, and/or otherwise managing reminders.

Selection of the interface element 304 may bring up an event wrap-up window such as the one described below with reference to FIG. 3G. The interface element 304 comprises a numerical field 308 indicating how many events are waiting to be wrapped-up by the user of the terminal 128 a.

The interface elements 301 a-301 d may each correspond to a filter to be applied to the list of events to determine which events are displayed in the list. In the example implementation, the filters include: nearby events (e.g., based on GNSS coordinates and/or other location information), today's events, upcoming events, and all events. The underlying data records used to populate the list may be stored in local memory 108 c and/or in the memory 122 of the server(s) 114.

Each of the elements 301 a-301 d comprises a respective one of numerical fields 302 a-302 d, where the numerical fields give a preview of how many events correspond to such a filter. The numbers shown are arbitrary for ease and clarity of description, and not intended to be limiting. In the example scenario depicted, element 301 c is selected (as indicated by the heavy line), and six upcoming events (each corresponding to one of the list entries 307 ₁-307 ₆) are displayed in the list.

Each of the list entries 307 ₁-307 ₆ corresponds to an event that meets the currently-selected filter criteria (“upcoming events” in the scenario depicted). Each of list entries 307 _(i) (i being an integer between 1 and 6) comprises interface elements 305 _(i) and 306 _(i).

Selection of the interface element 305 _(i), may cause prospect profiles, resources, and/or other data associated with the event i to be downloaded to the terminal 128 a from the server(s) 114. In this manner, any and/or all data needed for an event may be stored locally on the terminal 128 a for offline access. Where memory on the terminal 128 a is limited and/or where the terminal 128 a is guaranteed network access for the duration of the event, such downloading may be unnecessary and/or undesirable. Where the terminal 128 a does operate in an offline mode, data in the memory 108 c and data in the memory 122 may be occasionally (e.g., upon establishment of a network connection and/or upon request) and/or periodically be synchronized such that data on both the terminal 128 a and the server(s) 114 remains up-to-date to the extent possible and/or desired. Maintaining the data on the server(s) 114 up-to-date may enable other sourcing terminals and/or prospect terminals to access the data at or near real-time (where such other terminals have the appropriate permissions to access such data).

Selection of the interface element 309 may bring up a calendar window which may contain the logged-in user's calendar information, calendar information for other members of the entity for which the logged-in user is sourcing, calendar information for prospects, etc. The calendar window may be similar to, link to, or be a sub, or superset of, the interview scheduling window described below with reference to FIGS. 4F and 4G.

Selection of the interface element 306 _(i) may bring up an event details window such as shown in FIG. 3B.

FIG. 3B depicts an example event detail window displayed on a sourcing terminal. In FIG. 3B there is shown an event details window 319. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the window 319 is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 306 ₂ (FIG. 3A) corresponding to Event 2.

The interface element 314 is a profile picture, symbol, or other identifier for Event 2. The picture, symbol, or other identifier may, for example, have been selected by an event coordinator via an event administration interface. The interface element 315 may comprise a brief description of Event 2. For example, the interface element 315 may comprise the name, date, and location of Event 2.

Selection of the interface element 316 may bring up a prospect list window such as shown in FIG. 4A.

Each of the interface elements 318 ₁-318 _(M) (M being an arbitrary integer) may be generated from underlying prospect data records stored in local memory 108 c and/or in the memory 122 of the server(s) 114. Each of the interface elements 318 ₁-318 _(M) corresponds to a prospect who meets the selected filtering criteria established via interface element 317. Thus, in the scenario depicted, M prospects meet the current filtering criteria. The elements 318 ₁-318 _(M) may be sorted by, for example, a cultural fit score (discussed in more detail below) and/or by any other field of information in the underlying data records stored in memory. As an example, interface element 317 may enable filtering by: prospects who registered for Event 2; prospects who attended, or are in attendance, at Event 2; prospects who have been seen by Sourcer or another sourcer working for Organization; and prospects who, after being screened, have been invited for further screening/interviewing with Organization.

Each element 318 _(M) (m being an integer between 1 and M) may comprise a caption that provides quick-glance information, identifiers, or specifications (e.g., name, cultural fit with Organization, and/or any other suitable information) that may inform Sourcer as to which Prospect is which. Selection of the element 318 _(m) may bring up the prospect profile window 329 shown in FIG. 3C.

FIG. 3C depicts an example prospect profile window displayed on a sourcing terminal. The prospect profile window 329 comprises interface elements 320-328. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the window 329 is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 318 ₂ (FIG. 3B) corresponding to Prospect 2.

The interface element 320 is a profile picture, symbol, or other identifier for Prospect 2. The picture, symbol, or other identifier may, for example, have been uploaded by Prospect 2 or taken of Prospect 2 at Event 2 or a previous event.

The interface element 322 may comprise a biography, summary, or abstract of Prospect 2, which may, for example, have been uploaded to the server(s) 114 by Prospect 2 prior to Event 2 and/or scanned, typed or otherwise digitally or electronically entered into a registration terminal at Event 2.

The interface element 323 may comprise one or more scores that indicate a compatibility between Prospect 2 and Organization, between Prospect 2 and one or more of Organization's open requisitions (each corresponding to one or more opportunities with Organization), and/or between Prospect 2 and Sourcer. In an example implementation, the score(s) may be based on a cultural fit, as described in more detail below with reference to, for example, FIG. 8.

Selection of the interface element 324 may bring up an online profile of Prospect 2. An example online profile is described below with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B.

The interface element 321 may comprise contact info for Prospect 2. Selection of information in the interface element 321 may bring up an appropriate application for contacting Prospect 2. For example, in response to selection of an email link in the interface element 321, an e-mail app may open on the sourcing terminal. As another example, upon selection of a “messaging” link in the interface element 321, a messaging window may appear in which Sourcer can enter the message. Clicking “send” may then, for example, cause the message to be delivered via a method selected by Prospect 2. Example methods include email, SMS, and a messaging component of Prospect 2's online profile.

The interface elements 326, 327, and 328 provide for navigating between the window 329 of FIG. 3C, the window 337 of FIG. 3D, and window 339 of FIG. 3E.

FIG. 3D depicts an example prospect interactions window displayed on a sourcing terminal. The prospect interactions window 337 comprises interface elements 330 ₁-330 ₃, 331 ₁-331 ₃, 332, and 325 in addition to previously-discussed interface elements 326-328. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the window 337 is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 327 in the window 329 of FIG. 3C.

Each of the interface elements 330 ₁-330 ₃ (where three is an arbitrary number chosen for ease and clarity of description and not intended to be limiting) corresponds to an interaction with Prospect 2. An interaction could be, for example, a formal or informal meeting, an interview, a phone call, an email, etc. The list of interactions may thus be a timeline of personal interactions between Sourcer (and/or Sourcer's co-workers) and Prospect 2. This timeline may enable Sourcer to quickly recall details of Prospect 2, thus saving time during future interactions (e.g., don't ask questions previously asked and don't sit and think “Prospect 2 seems familiar”. This timeline may thus enable Sourcer to establish more understanding of Prospect 2 and a deeper personal relationship with Prospect 2. For example, the interaction may be logged and the interaction details may state, for example, “you and Prospect 2 were both at Event X but failed to interact.” This may trigger automatic sending, or displaying to Sourcer an offer to send, for example, a “sorry I missed you” message or a “I see you are here, lets meet up” message.

Each of the interface elements 330 ₁-330 ₃ comprises a caption that provides at-a-glance information (e.g., date and location) to aid Sourcer in determining which interaction is which. Each interface elements 330 _(i) (i being an integer between 1 and 3, in the depicted example) comprises an interface element 331 _(i) selection of which brings up an interaction details window which may provide more in-depth information about interaction i with prospect 2. Such information may, for example, include: Prospect 2 profile information, sourcing event profile information if interaction i was a sourcing event, a map of the location of interaction i, and notes taken during interaction i by Sourcer or whichever agent of Organization interacted with Prospect 2 during interaction i.

Each of the interface elements 330 ₁-330 ₃ may be generated from prospect data records stored in the memory 108 c and/or the memory 122. The interactions data may have been manually entered by a user of a sourcing terminal or other computing device and/or may have been automatically generated. Automatic generation of an interaction may occur, for example, in response to a sourcing terminal coming within a certain distance (e.g., Bluetooth range, Wi-Fi range, an NFC tap, etc.) of a prospect terminal associated with Prospect 2.

Selection of the interface element 332 may bring up a window for manual entry of a new interaction with Prospect 2.

Selection of the interface element 325 may bring up a window for sending a message (e.g., email, SMS, inter-profile message, etc.) to the prospect. Information about the previous interactions with the prospect may be automatically included, or suggested for inclusion, in the message to refresh the prospect's memory as to the identity of the message sender. Additionally or alternatively, the prospect's messaging client may automatically search the prospect's interactions upon receiving the message and display interactions with the message sender alongside the message (e.g, where the sender is a sourcer, the date and location that prospect met with the sourcer may be presented to the prospect along with the message).

FIG. 3E depicts an example prospect documents window displayed on a sourcing terminal. The prospect documents window 339 comprises interface elements 334 ₁-334 ₂, 335 ₁-335 ₂, and 336 ₁-336 ₂ in addition to previously-discussed interface elements 326-328. Although two instances of each of the elements 334, 335, and 336 are shown, any number of instances may be present. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the window 339 is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 328 in the window 329 of FIG. 3C.

Selection of the interface element 334 _(i) (where i is an integer between 1 and 2) may bring up a window in which a corresponding one of Prospect 2's abstract/résumé/CV is displayed (e.g., as a text file or as a .pdf). The different versions of Prospect 2's abstract/résumé/CV may correspond, for example, to different times and/or to different opportunities sought.

Selection of the interface element 334 _(i) (where i is an integer between 1 and 2) may bring up a window in which a corresponding one of Prospect 2's publications is displayed (e.g., as a text file or as a .pdf).

Selection of the interface element 336 _(i) (where i is an integer between 1 and 2) may bring up a window in which a corresponding one of Prospect 2's forms is displayed (e.g., as a text file or as a .pdf). One or more of the forms may be, for example, a waiver, a confidentiality agreement, or some other document executed by Prospect 2 and scanned into the electronic sourcing system. Additionally or alternatively, one or more of the forms may be an assessment form, a performance review, a note, or some other document pertaining to prospect 2 generated by Sourcer and/or another agent of Organization.

FIG. 3F depicts an example sourcer interactions window displayed on a sourcing terminal. The window 346 shown in FIG. 3F comprises interface elements 340, 341 ₁-341 ₄, 342 ₁-342 ₄, and 343. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the window 346 is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 312 in the window 300 of FIG. 3A. The window 246 is similar to the window 337 of FIG. 3D, with the exception that the window 246 lists interactions that are specific to Sourcer but not specific to any particular prospect.

Each interface element 341 _(i) (where i an integer between 1 and 4 and 4 was arbitrarily chosen for ease and clarity of description) may be similar to one of the interface elements 330 ₁-330 ₃. Each interface element 342 _(i) (where i an integer between 1 and 4 and 4 was arbitrarily chosen for ease and clarity of description) may be similar to one of the interface elements 331 ₁-331 ₃. Each interface element 344 _(i) (where i an integer between 1 and 4 and 4 was arbitrarily chosen for ease and clarity of description) may be similar the interface element 325. The interface element 343 may be similar to the interface element 332.

FIG. 3G depicts an example event wrap-up window displayed on a sourcing terminal. The window 347 shown in FIG. 3G comprises interface elements 345 ₁-345 ₂, 346 ₁-346 ₂, and 348 ₁-348 ₂ (two instances of each are shown for ease and clarity of description and the number of instances is not limited). For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the window 347 is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 304 in the window 300 of FIG. 3A.

Each of the interface elements 345 ₁ and 345 ₂ correspond to an event to be wrapped-up. Selection of the interface element 346 _(i) (where i is an integer between 1 and 2 in the depicted example) may bring up a window in which Sourcer can enter feedback about the corresponding event. Such feedback may be in the form of, for example, a questionnaire. Selection of the interface element 348 _(i) (where i is an integer between 1 and 2 in the depicted example) may bring up a window in which Sourcer can enter an expense report for the corresponding event. By digitally capturing the expense report information, budgeting may be performed in, or near, real-time, and metrics such as cost-effectiveness of events may be analyzed.

Any of the windows described with reference to FIGS. 3A-3G may, for example, be populated by pulling the underlying information from the database(s) 124 via an API.

FIG. 4A depicts an example prospect abstract/résumé/CV window displayed on a sourcing terminal. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the window 400 is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 316 in the window 319 of FIG. 3B.

Selection of the interface element 402 may return the terminal 128 a to the window 319 of FIG. 3B.

Each of the interface elements 405 ₁-405 ₅ may be generated from underlying prospect data records stored in local memory 108 c and/or in the memory 122 of the server(s) 114. Each of the interface elements 405 ₁-405 ₅ corresponds to a prospect who is associated with Event 2 and that meets the selected filtering criteria established using interface element 403. Thus, in the scenario depicted, five prospects meet the current filtering criteria (where five was arbitrarily selected for ease and clarity of description and is not intended to be limiting). The elements 405 ₁-405 ₅ may be sorted by, for example, a cultural fit score (discussed in more detail below) and/or by any other field of information in the underlying data records stored in memory. As an example, interface element 403 may enable filtering by: prospects who registered for Event 2; prospects who attended, or are in attendance, at Event 2; prospects who have been seen by Sourcer or another sourcer working for Organization; prospects who have checked-in to Organization's booth at Event 2 and are awaiting interview (e.g., then may be waiting in line in front of Organization's booth), and prospects who, after being screened, have been invited for further screening/interviewing with Organization. Filtering by prospects who have checked in to Organization's booth and/or are in line waiting to meet with Sourcer or another sourcer of Organization, and then filtering by compatibility with Organization and/or compatibility with Sourcer may enable Sourcer to quickly prioritize which prospect she/he would like to interview next. For example, where time for interviewing is running out, Sourcer may want to select a prospect that is: (1) in-line at Organization's booth, (2) a good fit for Organization, (3) meets requirements for an open requisition with Organization, and (3) a good fit for Sourcer. Where there are multiple sourcers working Organizations booth, the system may automatically prioritize prospects in line. An example is described in the next paragraph.

The system may first determine how many prospects there is time left to a (for illustration, it is assumed there is time for X prospects). The system may then determine, autonomously and/or with input from the sourcer(s) in response to prompts presented to the sourcers, which X of the prospects in line to interview based on some combination of: which of Organization's open requisitions are most important to be filled at this event, which of the prospects in-line are most compatible with Organization, which of the prospects in line are not scheduled to attend another day at this event or another future event (i.e., this may be the last chance to talk to them), and/or other similar criteria. Once the, the X prospects are selected they may be divvied, autonomously or with in response to input from the sourcer(s) in response to prompts presented to the sourcers, among the sourcers at the both based on their compatibility with the respective sourcers.

Selection of the interface element 402 may bring up a window which may enable searching for a particular prospect among the list of prospects corresponding to elements 405 ₁-405 ₅. The search may be performed based on a unique identifier of the particular prospect which may be manually entered by Sourcer (e.g., a name, mobile phone number, email address, etc.) and/or may be entered via scanning, reading, or other acceptance of an article or identifier associated with the particular prospect. For example, a barcode or QR code uniquely associated with the particular prospect may be read from the prospect's badge or smartphone. As additional examples, a fingerprint or a unique ID or code may be read via Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, NFC, USB, and/or any other suitable communication protocol.

Selection of the interface element 406 may bring up a window via which a prospect can be manually entered (e.g., after not being found via a search/scan). The interface element 407 may display Prospect 2's abstract/résumé/CV (e.g., as a text file, .jpeg or .pdf). Selection of the interface element 408 may bring up a window for adding an abstract/résumé/CV for Prospect 2 to the system (e.g., a second abstract/résumé/CV tailored for different field or opportunity). Selection of interface element 408B may bring up an interface for annotating (e.g., adding comments to) the prospect's abstract/résumé/CV. The annotations may, for example, be stored as an additional layers/metadata which may be over laid on the abstract/résumé/CV when viewed by via an interface of the electronic sourcing management system. The abstract/résumé/CV may be added by, for example, scanning a paper copy or taking a picture of a paper copy with a camera of the terminal 128 a.

The interface elements 409, 410, 411, and 412 enable navigating between the window 400 (FIG. 4A), an assessments window (FIG. 4B), a scratch pad window (FIG. 4E), and a schedule interview window (FIGS. 4F and 4G).

FIG. 4B depicts an example prospect assessment overview window displayed on a sourcing terminal. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the window 401 is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 410 in the window 400 of FIG. 4A.

The interface element 417 may provide a composite score (e.g., aggregate, mean, and/or median score) for the prospect based on one or more previously-completed assessments of the prospect. In an example implementation, a side-by-side comparison of such assessments (e.g., from various sourcers) used in generating the composite score may be viewable on the terminal 128 a.

Each of the interface elements 419 ₁-419 ₃ (where the number of instances was arbitrarily chosen as three for ease and clarity of description and is not intended to be limiting) corresponds to a completed or ongoing assessment of Prospect 2. Each of the assessment forms may have been completed, or may be in the process of being completed, by Sourcer and/or by another member of Organization (where the proper permissions are in place for Sourcer to view such assessment forms). Example assessment forms are described below with respect to FIGS. 4C and 4D.

Each of the interface elements 419 ₁-419 ₃ comprises a caption that provides at-a-glance information (e.g., assessor, date, and location) to aid Sourcer in determining which assessment form is which. Each interface elements 419 _(i) (i being an integer between 1 and 3) comprises an interface element 418 _(i) selection of which brings up an assessment form window such as described below with respect to FIG. 4C.

The interface element 416 may enable selection of criteria for filtering and/or sorting the assessment forms listed in the window 401. For example, assessment forms may be filtered by date, by assessor, etc.

Each of the interface elements 421 ₁ and 421 ₂ (where the number of instances was arbitrarily chosen as two for ease and convenience of description and is not intended to be limiting) may bring up an assessment form such as the one described below with reference to FIG. 4D. Where there are multiple instances of the interface element 421, as in FIG. 4B, each form may correspond to a different assessment form, where different forms may be customized for different opportunities, for different sourcers (e.g., based on the sourcer's educational background, technical background, employment background, etc.), for different prospects, and/or for different sourcing events.

FIG. 4C depicts an example completed assessment form displayed on a sourcing terminal. The form comprises a caption 430, assessment fields 423 ₁ and 423 ₂, 425 ₁ and 425 ₂, and 427 ₁ and 427 ₂, and an interface element 429 for bringing up a note-taking window such as the one described below with reference to FIG. 4E. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed that the assessment form is being displayed in response to selection, by Sourcer, of the interface element 419 ₂ in the window 401 of FIG. 4B and that the assessment form was completed by the applicable assessor.

The caption 430 may comprise information such as the applicable assessor's name, Prospect 2's name, the date of the assessment, the purpose of the assessment (e.g., the opportunity for which prospect was being considered), etc.

Each of the assessment fields 423 ₁ and 423 ₂ (where the number of instances was arbitrarily chosen as two for ease and convenience of description and is not intended to be limiting) may comprise a question asked of Prospect 2 and the applicable assessor's assessment (e.g., in the form a numerical rating from, for example, 1 to 5) of Prospect 2's response to that question.

Each of the assessment fields 425 ₁ and 425 ₂ (where the number of instances was arbitrarily chosen as two for ease and convenience of description and is not intended to be limiting) may comprise a question asked of Prospect 2 and Prospect 2's response to the question. The prospect's response may be, for example, typed in by the assessor during or after discussion with Prospect 2, typed in by Prospect 2, otherwise inputted via the sourcer terminal 128 a and/or on a prospect terminal and subsequently communicated to the sourcer terminal 128 a, and/or recorded via a microphone of the sourcer terminal 128 a.

Each of the assessment fields 427 ₁ and 427 ₂ (where the number of instances was arbitrarily chosen as two for ease and convenience of description and is not intended to be limiting) may comprise a characteristic, skill, or other measurable attribute (e.g., good leadership, motivated, good time management, outgoing, well-spoken, etc.) and the assessor's assessment (e.g., in the form a numerical rating from, for example, 1 to 5) of the extent to which the prospect possesses such characteristic, skill, or other measurable attribute.

Each of the questions/characteristics in fields 423 ₁, 423 ₂, 427 ₁, 427 ₂, and 429 may have been selected from a repository of questions either manually by the applicable assessor and/or algorithmically by the terminal 128 a and/or server(s) 114 based on various parameters. Example parameters include: a profile of Prospect 2, a profile of such assessor, the opportunity for which Prospect 2 was assessed, the event at which Prospect 2 was assessed, previously-selected questions/characteristics/skills/attributes (in this form and/or in a previous form), and/or answers/assessments to/of previous questions/characteristics/skills/attributes (in this form or in a previous form). Information on which the question/characteristic/skill/attribute selection was based may be sourced from a profile of Prospect 2 and/or another prospect's profile, a profile of Organization and/or another organization's profile, and/or a profile of the event at which the assessment form was completed. Examples of information found in such profiles are described below with reference to FIGS. 5A, 5B, 6A, 6B, 7A and 7B.

The repository of questions and characteristics from which the questions and characteristics are selected may be questions generated by the assessor and/or other assessors within the Organization. For example, when an assessor generates a new question for a form, that question may be stored into the repository and the assessor may be prompted to enter, and/or the question may be automatically tagged within the sourcing system, context information about who, what, where, when, why, and/or how the question/characteristic is being used. In this manner, a sharing (e.g., intra and/or inter-organization sharing, depending on permissions) of assessment questions/characteristics and context information about those questions/characteristics (e.g., perceived merits, deficiencies, recommended use scenarios, etc.) may be enabled by the electronic sourcing system. Such sharing may lead to highly-customized prospect assessments that are more effective and efficient in identifying the best prospects.

Also, the assessment questions/characteristics may be assessed to determine their effectiveness (and deleted, refined, etc., as necessary). For example, after using a particular question/characteristic in assessing a prospect, Sourcer may be prompted (e.g., via a message to Sourcer's profile in the electronic sourcing system) to provide feedback on whether Sourcer believed the question/characteristics to be effective in determining whether the prospect was a good fit. As another example, when a prospect assessed based on a particular question/characteristic is subsequently hired, engaged, or admitted, the effectiveness of that particular question/characteristic may be assessed based on the prospect's subsequent performance reviews.

FIG. 4D depicts an example in-progress assessment form displayed on a sourcing terminal. The assessment form shown in FIG. 4D is similar to the assessment form in FIG. 4C except that the form in FIG. 4D is not yet completed. That is, by interacting with the interface elements 433 ₁, 433 ₂, 435 ₁, 435 ₂, 437 ₁, and 437 ₂, Sourcer can fill-in his/her assessment of Prospect 2.

As discussed above, the questions/characteristics of the form shown in FIG. 4D may be customized for this particular assessment of this particular prospect (Prospect 2) by this particular assessor (Sourcer). The customization may have been prior to Sourcer selecting (in Window 401) the form and/or may occur during completion of the form. The questions/characteristics may have been selected based on, for example, the field in which Prospect 2 is seeking opportunities, Prospect 2's cultural fit with Organization, Prospect 2's past experience, Prospect 2's purported skills or expertise, Sourcer's technical and/or employment background, and/or any characteristics of Sourcer, Prospect, and/or Organization deemed applicable to effective assessment. Where the questions/characteristics are dynamically selected during completion of the form, a subsequent question may be selected on a previous question and/or response/assessment provided for a previous question/characteristic. For example, question 432 ₂ may be selected based on the question that was selected for question 432 ₁ and/or the response to question 432 ₁ provided in interface element 433 ₁. In this manner, follow-up questions customized to the ongoing assessment may be selected by Sourcer and/or suggested by the electronic sourcing system.

In an example implementation, any particular question appearing on any particular assessment form may be automatically selected and/or customized by: retrieving the assessor's profile from a database of the electronic system, retrieving the prospect's profile from the database, retrieving the job requisition(s) for which the prospect is being interviewed from the database, retrieving previous assessments of the prospect from the database, and then generating customizing the type, order, and/or content of questions asked based on the retrieved information. For example, technical questions may be customized based on information from assessor's profile about his/her technical background, based on information from assessor's profile about his/her technical background, and based on the technical requirements of a job requisition. As another example, where the prospect was previously assessed (e.g., at another event and/or by another recruiter) excerpts or responses from corresponding assessment forms may be retrieved and embedded in follow-up questions. For example, based on information electronically available to the terminal, a highly customized question such as the following may be entirely auto-generated: “Your profile says you know C++ and Java, but yesterday you told my colleague that you recently learned Ruby. I know all three, can you explain where you would prefer to use one over the other?”)

FIG. 4E depicts an example note-taking window displayed on a sourcing terminal. The note taking window 439 comprises an interface element 440 in which notes can be written or drawn (in the case of a touch screen), typed, dragged-and-dropped (E.g. for pictures and/or video clips), etc. The interface element 441 may bring up a window for selecting an audio clip from memory to be added to the note and/or may bring up an audio recording application (using a microphone of the sourcer terminal 128 a) for capturing an audio component of the note. The interface element 442 may bring up a window for selecting a video clip from memory to be added to the note and/or may bring up a video recording application for capturing (using a camera of the sourcer terminal 128 a) a video component of the note. The interface element 443 may bring up a window for selecting an image from memory to be added to the note and/or may bring up a picture-taking application for capturing (using a camera of the sourcer terminal 128 a) a picture component of the note.

When a note is generated and subsequently saved to memory using the note-taking window, the resulting note may be associated with one or more prospects, organizations, sourcers, and/or events such that the note may be accessible from various windows and/or in various ways from the sourcing terminal 128 a. Which prospects(s), organization(s), sourcers(s), and/or event(s) a note is associated with may be selected by the user creating the note and/or may be automatically determined based on context information such as, for example, who is logged into the sourcer terminal 128 a, the date and time, the window from which the note-taking window 439 was opened, etc.

FIG. 4F depicts an example interview scheduling window displayed on a sourcing terminal. In FIG. 4F there is a calendar interface element 444 into which one or more of the interface elements 405 ₁-405 ₅ may be dragged to schedule interview(s) (or meeting(s) or other interactions) with the prospects(s). In response to dragging the interface element 405 _(i) into the element 444, an invite may be sent to Prospect i. An indication of the scheduled interview in window 444 may be displayed in a first manner (e.g., in a first color) before Prospect i accepts the invite and in a second manner (e.g., in a second color) after Prospect i accepts the invite. Upon dragging the element 405 _(i) to a particular day on the calendar element 444, the system may check the calendar of Prospect i (which may be stored, for example, on server(s) 114) and then automatically schedule the interaction between Prospect i and Sourcer for a timeslot of that day that is available on both Prospect i and Sourcer's calendars. Where multiple ones of the elements 405 ₁-405 ₅ (corresponding to multiple prospects) are dragged to the calendar element 444, the sourcing system may attempt to accommodate the calendars of all selected prospects and Sourcer. Where all cannot be accommodated, the system may prioritize placement of the prospects on the calendar based on, for example, prospect profile information (including a cultural fit score), a priority-level assigned to the prospects by Sourcer (or another member of Organization), and/or priority-levels assigned to Sourcer and/or Organization assigned by the prospects. Priority-levels of prospect assigned by sourcers may be hidden from prospects and priority-levels of organizations assigned by prospects may be hidden from sourcers.

For example, where a first sourcer of a first organization and a second sourcer of a second organization each want to interact with prospect i during the same timeslot on the same day, the system may schedule prospect i to interact with: the sourcer assigned a higher priority by prospect i, the organization assigned a higher priority by prospect i, the organization for which prospect i is a better cultural fit, and/or based on some combination of these and/or other factors.

FIG. 4G depicts another example interview scheduling window displayed on a sourcing terminal. The window 446 in FIG. 4G may be used for automated scheduling of interactions (e.g., interviews) between one or more prospects and one or more sourcers and/or interviewers. The window 446 comprises an interface element 447 for selecting a date or dates to be scheduled. The interface element 452 may display a preview of Sourcer's calendar for the selected date(s). The interface element 448 may display the selected prospects to be scheduled on the selected date(s). Associated with each prospect is an interface element 449 which Sourcer may use to prioritize his/her/its desire to interact with the selected prospects. Selection of the interface element 450 may cause the sourcing system to process the information in element 448 along with the information in the calendars of the selected prospects to generate a proposed schedule that best accommodates Sourcer's schedule and the selected prospects' schedules based on priority-levels, cultural fit scores, and/or other factors. A preview of a successful scheduling may then be displayed. Such a preview may indicate prospects who could not be scheduled given the current criteria. If the Sourcer is happy with the proposed schedule he/she/it may then select the interface element 451 to send invites to the selected prospects. If any of the invites are declined, the system may suggest alternate prospects to be scheduled for the timeslots vacated by the declined invitations.

The preceding paragraph described an example implementation in which the prospects' and Sourcer's calendar are taken into account when setting Sourcer's calendar. In another implementation, the calendars of other Sourcers may also be taken into account. For example, each sourcer of each organization and each prospect participating in a sourcing event may submit their desired interactions along with a priority-level of those interactions. Once all submissions are submitted (e.g., at a pre-determined deadline set by the event), the sourcing system may algorithmically populate the calendars of all sourcers and prospects in an attempt to maximize the number of prospects that get to interact with their preferred organizations and/or to maximize the number of preferred prospects that sourcers get to interact with. Such automated scheduling may help minimize scheduling conflicts as compared to the prospects and sourcers manually setting their calendars.

Any of the windows described with reference to FIGS. 4A-4G may, for example, be populated by pulling the underlying information from the database(s) 124 via an API.

FIG. 5A depicts an example public prospect profile window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. Shown is a prospect profile window of prospect John Doe. The profile picture interface element 501 comprises a picture, symbol, or other identifier that John Doe selected for others to see when viewing his profile. The interface element 502 may comprise the name that John Doe has chosen for others to see when viewing his profile. The interface element 503 comprises a brief description or headline that John Doe has typed in for others to see when viewing his profile. The interface element 504 comprises contact information that John Doe has chosen for others to be able to see when viewing his profile.

Interacting with the interface element 505 may bring up a messaging window for sending a message to John Doe. When a user interacts with the interface element 506, the user's profile may be subscribed to John Doe's profile. When a user interacts with the interface element 507, the user may recommend John Doe (e.g., in general and/or for a specific opportunity, skill or attribute) and the recommendation may post to John Doe's profile, the user's profile, and/or may be sent to the organization (e.g., the organizations profile in the electronic sourcing system and/or to the organization's abstract/résumé/CV collection email address) to which John Doe is being recommended.

The interface element 510 may comprise a plurality of interface elements 508 each of which corresponds to an organization, prospect, and/or event to which John Doe is subscribed. Clicking on an interface element 508 _(i) may open a profile window of the corresponding prospect, organization, or event. Interacting with the interface element 509 may bring up a window displaying all prospects, organizations, and/or events to which John Doe is subscribed. In addition to, or instead of, corresponding to profiles to which John Doe is subscribed, one or more interface elements 508 may correspond to an organization of which John Doe is a member or employee.

The interface element 517 may comprise information about John Doe's credentials and may comprise a plurality of interface elements 515 and 516. Each interface element 515 _(i) may correspond to a particular criteria (e.g., school) of John Doe and the corresponding interface element 516 _(i) may comprise details about John Doe's involvement with such criteria.

The interface element 520 may comprise documents such as John Doe's abstract(s)/résumé(s)/CV(s), publications, projects, etc. Interacting with one of the interface elements 518 may bring up a copy (e.g., a .pdf, .jpeg or .html file) of the document associated with the interface element 518. Each interface element 519 may comprise a snapshot, a summary, excerpt, etc., from the corresponding document.

The interface element 521 may comprise a list of skills, characteristics, etc., that pertain to John Doe. The list may be populated from a standardized or uniform set of tags.

When the interface element 512 is selected (as indicated by the heavy line in FIG. 5A), the interface element 514 is displayed in the prospect profile window. The interface element 514 may comprise, for example, work history details, academic history details, affiliations, association memberships, John Doe's interests, John Doe's publications, John Doe's projects, etc. The information interface element 514 may have been manually entered by John Doe, read from documents uploaded by John Doe, and/or imported from other websites or databases.

Now referring to FIG. 5B, when the interface element 513 is selected (as indicated by the heavy line), one or more interface elements 531 may be displayed in the prospect profile window. Each interface element 531 _(i) may comprise a message or status update posted by John Doe and may indicate the day/time at which it was posted. When a message refers to an organization, prospect, or event that has a profile in the electronic sourcing system, the organization, prospect, or event name may appear as an interface element 532 that links to an associated profile.

Now referring to FIG. 5C, when the interface element 522 is selected (as indicated by the heavy line), interface elements 590, 591, 592, and 593 may be displayed in the prospect profile. Each interface element 590 (for simplicity of illustration, only one is shown) may comprise a description (subject matter, dates, sponsors, thesis, conclusions, etc.) of a project with which the prospect has been involved. Each interface element 590 may have a corresponding interface element 591 which comprises tags (e.g., the industry to which the project is applicable, the technology used for the project, etc.) that provide quick, easily searchable information about the project. Each interface element 593 may be, or link to, a file (e.g., images, white papers, presentations, samples of code, data sets, etc.) attached to the project.

Each interface element 591 may have a corresponding one or more interface elements 592 (two are shown for illustration), each of which corresponds to another person who worked on the project. In instances when the person associated with element 592 _(i) has a profile on in the electronic sourcing system, the interface element 592 _(i) may link to that person's profile. In this regard, when John Doe is entering the project into his profile, an interface element for entering collaborators may be presented and, upon a collaborator being entered, the system may automatically search to see if that collaborator has a profile in the electronic system. If the collaborator does have a profile, an interface element 592 corresponding to that collaborator may be populated on John Doe's profile (perhaps after prompting John Doe and/or the collaborator to agree to presenting the link and/or based on configured user preferences in John Doe's profile and/or the collaborator's profile. In instances when the person does not have a profile in the electronic sourcing system, an invite to create a profile in the sourcing system may be sent to that person in response to the prospect listing him/her as a collaborator on the project. The invite may, for example, give the person the option of creating a profile with pre-populated information pertaining to the project. When one collaborator on a project updates information pertaining to that project, the updates may be automatically updated on the other collaborators' profiles and/or the other collaborators may be sent a notification the update has been made and given the option to add the updates to their respective profiles.

FIG. 5D depicts an example private prospect home window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. FIG. 5D displays an example window via which a prospect (in this case John Doe) may maintain his/her/its profile (e.g., as shown in FIG. 5A and 5B) and also interact with the electronic sourcing system to perform various sourcing-related processes described herein. The interface elements 540, 541, and 542 may be used for navigating between the window shown in FIG. 5D, the window shown in FIG. 5E, and a messaging window.

Still referring to FIG. 5D, the profile picture, symbol, or other identifier displayed in the profile window of FIGS. 5A and 5B may be changed via interaction with interface element 546. The name displayed in the profile window of FIGS. 5A and 5B may be changed via interaction with interface element 543. The headline/brief description displayed in the profile window of FIGS. 5A and 5B may be changed via interaction with the interface element 544. The contact information displayed in the profile window of FIGS. 5A and 5B may be changed via interaction with interface element 545. Through interaction with the interface elements 546 and subsequent clicking or tapping of the interface element 547, an interface element 531 containing the message may be posted to the profile window shown in FIG. 5B.

The interface element 553 may comprise a list of organizations to which John Doe is subscribed in the electronic sourcing system and/or of which John Doe is a member (whether it be as employee, associate, volunteer, etc.). Each element 552 _(i) may correspond to one such organization and may, in turn, comprise an element 557 _(i) that links to the organization's profile in the sourcing system, an element 558 _(i) that shows a compatibility score between John Doe and the organization, and an element 559 _(i) that links to the profile of particular sourcer at organization with whom John Doe has interacted. The list may be filtered and/or sorted based on any number and/or variety of criteria using the interface element 551.

The interface element 555 comprises a list of events that John Doe is subscribed to in the sourcing system and/or has attended or is planning to attend. Each event in the list may correspond to an element 554 which may link to the event's profile and/or an event organizer's profile. The interface element 556 may comprise statistics regarding John Doe's profile such as number of profile views, time since last profile view, number of organizations, prospects, and/or events subscribed-to, number of organizations, prospects, and/or events that are subscribed to John Doe's profile, etc.

The interface element 548 may comprise a feed of messages from organizations, prospects, and/or events to which John Doe is subscribed. Each interface element 550 _(i) may comprise a message or status update posted by an organization, prospect, or event and may indicate the day/time at which it was posted. When a message refers to an organization, prospect, or event that has a profile in the electronic sourcing system, the organization, prospect, or event name may appear as an interface element 549 that links to an associated profile.

Now referring to FIG. 5E, the interface element 581 may provide a search tool for searching to discover organization profiles, prospect profiles, recruiter profiles, and/or event profiles that meet selected criteria (e.g., a threshold compatibility score). Search/filter criteria may be entered via the interface element 582 and the results may be displayed in the interface element 583.

The interface element 584 may provide a search tool for searching to discover prospect and/or sourcer profiles that meet selected criteria (e.g., a threshold compatibility score). Search/filter criteria may be entered via the interface element 585 and the results may be displayed in the interface element 586. The interface element 587 may provide a search tool for searching to discover event profiles meeting selected criteria (e.g., a threshold compatibility score). Search/filter criteria may be entered via the interface element 582 and the results may be displayed in the interface element 589.

The interface element 560 may comprise a list of organizations to which it is suggested that John Doe subscribe. The suggestions may be generated based on, for example, analysis by the sourcing system of: John Doe's profile, profiles to which John Doe is subscribed, the organizations' profiles, profiles to which the organizations are subscribed, scores indicating compatibility between John Doe and the organizations, John Doe's past interactions, John Doe's scheduled interactions, and/or information in John Doe's documents. Each interface element 567 _(i) may correspond to one of the suggested organizations and may, in turn, comprise: an interface element 562 _(i) that links to the organization's profile, an interface element 564 _(i) that shows a fit score (e.g., based on a workplace culture questionnaire) between John Doe and the organization, and an interface element 566 _(i) that gives a brief description of the organization.

The interface element 571 may comprise a list of people (e.g., prospects and/or sourcers) to which it is suggested that John Doe subscribe. The suggestions may be generated based on, for example, an analysis by the sourcing system of: John Doe's profile, profiles to which John Doe is subscribed, the peoples' profiles, profiles to which the people are subscribed, scores indicating compatibility between John Doe and the people, John Doe's past interactions, John Doe's scheduled interactions, the peoples' past interactions, the peoples' scheduled interactions, and/or information in John Doe's documents. Each interface element 570 _(i) may correspond to one of the suggested persons and may, in turn, comprise: an interface element 568 _(i) that links to the person's profile, and an interface element 569 _(i) that gives a brief description of the person.

The interface element 572 may comprise a list of events that are suggested for John Doe to attend and/or subscribe. The suggestions may be generated based on, for example, an analysis by the sourcing system of: John Doe's profile, profiles to which John Doe is subscribed, the events' profiles, profiles to which the events' profiles are subscribed, organizations attending the events, people attending the events, scores indicating compatibility between John Doe and the events, John Doe's past interactions, John Doe's scheduled interactions, and/or information in John Doe's documents. Each interface element 575 _(i) may correspond to one of the suggested events and may, in turn, comprise: an interface element 573 _(i) that links to the event's profile, and an interface element 574 _(i) that gives a brief description of the event.

The interface element 576 may comprise a list of requisitions (each associated with an opportunity) to which it is suggested that John Doe apply. The requisitions may be stored in the server(s) 114 which may functions as the organizations' prospect tracking systems (PTSs) and/or which may import the requisitions from organizations' prospect tracking systems (PTSs) and/or other sources on the Internet. The suggestions may be generated based on, for example, an analysis by the sourcing system of: John Doe's profile, the events' profiles, subscriptions associated with the events' profiles, organizations attending the events, people attending the events, scores indicating compatibility between John Doe and the events, John Doe's past interactions, John Doe's scheduled interactions, and/or information in John Doe's documents. Each interface element 579 _(i) may correspond to one of the suggested requisitions and may, in turn, comprise: an interface element 577 _(i) that gives a brief description of the opportunity associated with the requisition and/or links to the requisition (e.g., on the associated organization's profile), and an interface element 578 _(i) via which John Doe can submit an application/proposal/etc. for the opportunity associated with the requisition. For example, upon clicking or tapping the interface element 578 _(i) John Doe's abstract/résumé/CV and/or other information from John Doe's profile in the electronic sourcing system may be electronically submitted to the organization associated with the requisition. The interface element 580 may enable John Doe to apply for multiple opportunities, possibly associated with multiple organizations, in a single interaction (e.g., click or tap). For example, an organization may associate requisite fields of information with a particular requisition and, in response to a prospect clicking to apply to an opportunity associated with the requisition, such associated fields of information may be pulled from the prospect's profile, formatted as configured by the organization, and submitted to the organization's prospect tracking system. Additional details of application submission are described below with reference to FIGS. 14-18

Any of the windows described with reference to FIGS. 5A-5E may, for example, be populated by pulling the underlying information from the database(s) 124 via an API and/or other interface. Any of the windows described with reference to FIGS. 5A-5E may, for example, be viewed on a prospect terminal 102, a sourcer terminal 128, or any other suitable computing device.

FIG. 6A depicts an example public event profile window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. Shown is an event profile window of Event A. The profile picture interface element 602 comprises a picture, symbol, or other identifier that an administrator of the event profile selected for others to see when viewing Event A's profile. The interface element 603 may comprise the name that Event A has chosen for others to see when viewing the profile. The interface element 604 comprises a brief description or headline that the administrator of Event A's profile has typed in for others to see when viewing the profile.

When a user interacts with the interface element 605, the user's profile may be subscribed to Event A's profile. When a user interacts with the interface element 607, Event A may be added to the user's calendar and/or a reminder for Event A may be set in a list of reminders in the user's profile. Interacting with the interface element 609 may bring up a messaging window for recommending Event A to one or more other persons and/or organizations. Interacting with the interface element 610 may bring up a window via which the user can sponsor Event A (e.g., make a donation, display that user is a sponsor of Event A on Event A's profile and/or on another website, and/or advertise Event A on the user's profile and/or on another website).

The interface element 617 may comprise information about Event A such as, for example, a date of Event A, location of Event A, information about organizations registered to attend, information about prospects registered to attend, information about opportunities that will be interviewed, industries in which Event A attendees are involved, and information about past occurrences of Event A. The information in the interface element 617 may be populated from a standard set of tags, for example. The interface element 618 may comprise a list of events similar (e.g., in any of the information in element 617, in prospects and/or organizations that are subscribed, etc.) to Event A. Each interface element 620 _(i) may correspond to a similar event and may, in turn, comprise an interface element 619 _(i) that links to the similar event's profile and an interface element 621 _(i) that, when interacted with, subscribes the user to the similar event. The interface element 622 may comprise a list of other persons, organizations, and/or events whose profiles are subscribed to Event A; each interface element 623 _(i) may correspond to one such prospect and each interface element 624 _(i) may correspond to one such organization.

The interface element 615 may comprise a long-form description of Event A. The interface element 616 may comprise a map of Event A. The map may be a street map and/or an indoor map of Event A. The interface element 613 may comprise a list of people (e.g., administrators, coordinators, etc.) of Event A. For each person in interface element 613 there may be an interface element 611 _(i) that links to his/her profile in the electronic sourcing system and/or an interface element 612 _(i) that provides a headline or brief bio of the person. The interface element 614 may comprise statistics regarding Event A's profile such as number of profile views, time since last profile view, number of organizations, prospects, and/or events subscribed-to, number of organizations, prospects, and/or events that are subscribed to John Doe's profile, etc.

When the interface element 606 is selected (as indicated by the heavy line in FIG. 6A) the window of FIG. 6A is displayed. When the interface element 608 is selected (as indicated by the heavy line in FIG. 6B), the window of FIG. 6B is displayed.

Now referring to FIG. 6B, the interface element 625 may comprise a feed of messages from organizations, prospects, and/or events to which John Doe is subscribed. Each interface element 628 _(i) may comprise a message or status update posted by an organization, prospects, or event and may indicate the day/time at which it was posted. When a message refers to an organization, prospect, or event that has a profile in the electronic sourcing system, the organization, prospect, or event name may appear as an interface element 626 that links to an associated profile.

Information elements of the event profile may be accessible (e.g., via an API) such that they may be reflected on an organization's profile in the electronic sourcing system and/or on an organization's web site (e.g., on Organization A's sourcing homepage at www.organizationA.com/recruiting).

FIG. 6C depicts an example event private profile administration window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. FIG. 6C displays an example window via which an event organizer/administrator (in this case the administrator of Event A's profile) may maintain Event A's profile (e.g., as shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B) and also interact with the electronic sourcing system to perform various sourcing-related processes described herein. The profile picture, symbol, or other identifier displayed in the profile window of FIGS. 6A and 6B may be changed via interaction with interface element 640. The name displayed in the profile window of FIGS. 6A and 6B may be changed via interaction with interface element 641. The headline/brief description displayed in the profile window of FIGS. 6A and 6B may be changed via interaction with the interface element 642. The people and corresponding descriptions shown in the interface element 613 of FIG. 6A may be changed via interaction with interface elements 643 and 644.

The interface element 645 may comprise a list of organizations that are suggested for the administrator of Event A to invite to attend Event A. The suggestions may be generated based on, for example, analysis by the sourcing system of: Event A's profile, the organizations' profiles, subscriptions associated with the organizations' profiles, past attendance of Event A, prospects registered to attend Event A, and/or organizations registered to attend Event A. Each interface element 659 _(i) may correspond to one of the suggested organizations and may, in turn, comprise: an interface element 646 _(i) that links to the organization's profile, an interface element 647 _(i) that gives a brief description of the organization.

The interface element 648 may comprise a list of people (e.g., prospects and/or sourcers) that are suggested to be invited to Event A. The suggestions may be generated based on, for example, an analysis by the sourcing system of: Event A's profile, the peoples' profiles, subscriptions associated with the people's profiles, scores indicating compatibility between Event A and the people, past attendance of Event A, prospects registered to attend Event A, and/or organizations registered to attend Event A. Each interface element 570 _(i) may correspond to one of the suggested persons and may, in turn, comprise: an interface element 568 _(i) that links to the person's profile, and an interface element 569 _(i) that gives a brief description of the person.

The interface element 651 may provide a search tool for searching to discover organization profiles meeting selected criteria (e.g., in a particular location and/or industry). Search/filter criteria may be entered via the interface element 652 and the results may be displayed in the interface element 653. The interface element 654 may enable sending invitations to Event A to all (or a selected subset) organizations meeting in the interface element 653. The interface element 655 may provide a search tool for searching to discover prospect and/or sourcer profiles meeting selected criteria (e.g., in a particular location and/or industry). Search/filter criteria may be entered via the interface element 656 and the results may be displayed in the interface element 657. The interface element 658 may enable sending invitations to Event A to all (or a selected subset) prospects and/or sourcers in the interface element 657.

Any of the windows described with reference to FIGS. 6A-6C may, for example, be populated by pulling the underlying information from the database(s) 124 via an API and/or other interface. Any of the windows described with reference to FIGS. 5A-5E may, for example, be viewed on a prospect terminal 102, a sourcer terminal 128, or any other suitable computing device.

FIG. 7A depicts an example public organization profile window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. Shown is an organization profile window of Organization A. The profile picture, symbol, or other identifier interface element 701 comprises a picture, symbol, or other identifier that an administrator of Organization A's profile selected for others to see when viewing Organization A's profile. The interface element 702 may comprise the name that Event A has chosen for others to see when viewing the profile. The interface element 703 comprises a brief description or headline that the administrator of Event A's profile has typed in for others to see when viewing the profile.

The interface element 704 may display a compatibility score (e.g., based on work culture questionnaires) between Organization A and the user viewing Organization A's profile. When a user interacts with the interface element 705, the user's profile may be subscribed to Organization A's profile. Interacting with the interface element 706 may bring up a messaging window for recommending Organization A to one or more other persons and/or events. Interacting with the interface element 708 may bring up a window via which the user can sponsor Organization A (e.g., make a donation, display that user is a sponsor of Organization A on Organization A's profile, and/or on another website, and/or advertise Organization A on the user's profile and/or on another website).

The interface element 718 may comprise information about Organization A such as, for example, a website URL, and organization demographics such as, for example, size, industry, characteristics and/or attributes of members/employees, and/or diversity information. The information in the interface element 718 may be populated from a standard set of tags, for example. The interface element 726 may comprise a list of organizations similar (e.g., in any of the information in element 718, in what prospects and/or organizations are subscribed to the organization, in what prospects and/or organizations the organization is subscribed to, etc.) to Organization A. Each interface element 722 _(i) may correspond to a similar organization and may, in turn, comprise an interface element 719 _(i) that links to the similar organization's profile, an interface element 720 _(i) that shows a compatibility score between John Doe and the organization, and an interface element 721 _(i) that, when interacted with, subscribes the user to the similar organization. The interface element 723 comprises a list of other persons, organizations, and/or events whose profiles are subscribed to Organization A; each interface element 724 _(i) may correspond to one such prospect and each interface element 725 _(i) may correspond to one such organization.

The interface element 716 may comprise a long-form description of Organization A. The interface element 717 may comprise a map of Organization A's location(s). The interface element 711 may comprise list of people (e.g., administrators, Sourcers, etc.) of Organization A. For each person in interface element 711, there is an interface element 709 that links to his/her/its profile in the electronic sourcing system and/or an interface element 710 that provides a headline or brief bio of the person. The interface element 712 may comprise a list of other organizations (e.g., non-profits) of which Organization A is a member. The interface element 715 may comprise statistics regarding Organization A's profile such as number of profile views, time since last profile view, number of organizations, prospects, and/or events subscribed-to, number of organizations, prospects, and/or events that are subscribed to Organization A's profile, etc.

When the interface element 706 is selected (as indicated by the heavy line in FIG. 7A) the window of FIG. 7A is displayed. When the interface element 707 is selected (as indicated by the heavy line in FIG. 7B), the window of FIG. 7B is displayed.

Now referring to FIG. 7B, the interface element 726 may comprise a feed of messages from organizations, prospects, and/or events to which Organization A is subscribed. Each interface element 727 _(i) may comprise a message or status update posted by an organization, prospect, or event and may indicate the day/time at which it was posted. When a message refers to an organization, prospect, or event that has a profile in the electronic sourcing system, the organization, prospect, or event name may appear as an interface element 728 that links to an associated profile.

FIG. 7C depicts an example sourcing dashboard window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. The sourcing dashboard window may provide an interface for managing the content, layout, etc., of the profile windows of FIGS. 7A and 7B and for managing sourcing processes. The sourcing dashboard window of FIG. 7C may typically be used by an organization's appropriate sourcing department. For example, for personnel prospects, the sourcing department may be human resources and/or a recruiting coordinator, for supplier prospects, the sourcing department may be engineering, for membership prospects, the sourcing department may be a membership committee, etc. Interacting with the interface element 730 may bring up a window for editing the profile displayed in FIGS. 7A and 7B. Such a window may be similar to the windows shown in FIGS. 5D and 6C. That is, such a window may comprise various interface elements for editing corresponding interface elements of the profile windows in FIGS. 7A and 7B.

Interacting with the interface element 731 may bring up a window for assessing sourcer performance according to various metrics. An example of such a window is shown in FIG. 7D. Interacting with the interface element 732 may bring up a window for assessing various metrics associated with the organization's attendance and/or activity at one or more sourcing events. An example of such a window is shown in FIG. 7E. Interacting with the interface element 733 may bring up a window for managing an organization sourcing calendar. An example of such a window is shown in FIG. 7F. Interacting with the interface element 734 may bring up a window for managing an organization's requisitions (each associated with one or more opportunities). An example of such a window is shown in FIG. 7G. Interacting with the interface element 735 may bring up a window for performing a search to discover prospects and/or events that might be suitable for organization. An example of such a window is shown in FIG. 7I.

FIG. 7D depicts an example sourcer assessment window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. Interaction with the interface element 736 may enable selecting, filtering, and/or sorting the organization's sourcers to generate the list of sourcers being assessed in interface element 737. The interface element 738 may then display statistics and/or performance metrics for the sourcers listed in interface element 737.

The sorting/filtering of the list via interface element 736 may be based on any one or more of the metrics or statistics shown in interface element 738. For a particular sourcer (“Sourcer”) of a particular organization (“Organization”), such metrics and/or statistics may include, for example: number of events attended by Sourcer, list of particular events attended by Sourcer, number of prospects screened by Sourcer, list of particular prospects screened by Sourcer, number of offers presented to prospects identified by Sourcer, number of prospects identified by Sourcer that are ongoing in the interview process, number of offers, opportunities accepted/rejected by prospects identified by Sourcer, number of prospects identified by Sourcer that were ultimately awarded an opportunity from Organization, subsequent performance of such prospects (e.g., based on internal performance reviews and/or on metrics such as sales generated, percentage of deadlines met, rate of rejection of deliverables, or the like.), statistics regarding Sourcer's profile in the electronic sourcing system, and/or assessment scores that Sourcer has given to prospects generally and/or to particular prospects. The interface element 738 may present the information in the form of, for example, lists, graphs, charts, etc. The information presented in interface element 738 may also be presented such that sourcer(s) can, for example, be compared side-by-side with other sourcers and/or year-over-year performance.

FIG. 7E depicts an example event assessment window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. Interaction with the interface element 739 may enable selecting, filtering, and/or sorting the events to generate the list of events being assessed in interface element 740. The interface element 741 may then display statistics and/or sourcing performance metrics for the events listed in interface element 740.

The sorting/filtering of the list via interface element 739 may be based on any one or more of the metrics or statistics shown in interface element 741. For a sourcing coordinator of a particular organization (“Organization”) viewing the interface element 741, such metrics and/or statistics may include, for example: Organization's costs in participating in the event(s), number of prospects (perhaps meeting particular, selected criteria) that attended the event(s), number prospects screened by Organization's sourcers at the event(s), number of Organization opportunities filled by sourcers working at the event(s), number of Organization opportunities filled by prospects discovered at the event(s), subsequent performance (e.g., based on internal performance reviews) of such prospects, list of prospects (or top prospects) identified (e.g., screened and recommended for interviewing) at the event(s), averages assessment scores given by Organization's sourcers to prospect screened at the event(s), average compatibility scores of prospects who attended the event(s), top compatibility scores of prospects who attended the event(s), number of referrals originated at the event(s), statistics regarding the number and/or rates at which prospect terminals were scanned by sourcer terminals and/or check-in terminals at the event(s). The interface element 741 may present the information in the form of, for example, lists, graphs, charts, etc. The information presented in interface element 741 may also be presented such that events can be compared side-by-side and/or year-over-year.

FIG. 7F depicts an example event scheduler window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. Interface elements 758, 759, and 760 may be displayed on a calendar and/or in a chronological list. Each element 758 may correspond to a past event. Each element 759 may correspond to an in-progress event. Each element 760 may correspond to a future event.

Each interface element 758 _(i) may provide the name of the associated event and may, when interacted with, bring up the associated event's profile in the electronic sourcing system. Each interface element 751 _(i) may indicate a status of the corresponding event. Each interface element 752 _(i) may, when interacted with, bring up a list of prospects who attended and/or are registered to attend the associated event and may indicate a status of each prospect (e.g., whether the prospect was screened at a past event, individual and/or composite assessment scores the prospect received at the past event, whether the prospect is scheduled for further interviewing, whether the prospect are high priority to be screened at a future event, a time at which the prospect is to be screened at a future event, etc.). Each interface element 753 _(i), when interacted with, may bring up a window in which assessments (e.g., submitted by sourcers via interface element 304 of window 300 in FIG. 3A) of the associated event may be reviewed and analyzed. Each interface element 754 _(i), when interacted with, may bring up a window (e.g., with a calendar element) that displays the schedules of sourcers and/or interviewers attending an in-progress event. Each interface element 756 _(i), when interacted with, may bring up a window (e.g., with a calendar element and list of sourcers and interviewers) via which the sourcing coordinator can schedule sourcers and/or interviewers for the upcoming event. Each interface element 757 i may, when interacted with, bring up a window for creating and/or uploading forms (e.g., assessment forms described with reference to FIGS. 4B-4D.) and/or other resources such as, for example, the resources described with reference to FIGS. 2A and 2B.

Each interface element 755 _(i) may bring up a window via which the sourcing coordinator (e.g., human resources manager) can view (e.g., in real-time and/or in periodic updates) recently-completed and in-progress assessment forms being filled out by sourcing and/or interviewers attending the in-progress event. In this manner, a sourcing manager or coordinator can, at or near real-time, track the progress and/or value of particular sourcing events and/or sourcers in real-time, can allocate and de-allocate resources to a particular event depending on current need, manage sourcer and/or interviewer schedules (e.g., to accommodate high-priority prospects), identify the particularly strong prospects as soon as possible, etc.

FIG. 7G depicts an example requisition management window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. The interface element 761 may enable selection of criteria for filtering and/or sorting a list of requisitions shown in the interface element. The requisitions may be sorted by, for example, any of the information shown in interface element 764. Such information may include, for example, requirements and/or qualifications listed in the requisition, compensation to be paid for the opportunities associated with the requisitions, geographic location of the opportunities associated with the requisitions, dates or timelines of the opportunities associated with the requisition, etc. The interface element 765 may comprise information about the pool of prospects from which particular requisition(s) may be filled. Information about the pool of prospects may include, for example, number of prospects in the electronic sourcing system that meet the qualifications/requirements in the requisition, number of prospects already screened and/or interviewed for the requisition, number of prospects scheduled to be interviewed for the requisition, where the prospects in the pool where identified (e.g., via their online profiles, via paper abstract/résumé/CV, via a particular event, via an external website or sourcing server, etc.), sourcer(s) associated with particular prospects in the pool, links to profiles of prospects in the pool, assessment scores of prospects in the pool, feedback regarding the organization received from prospects in the pool, etc.

FIG. 7H depicts an example requisition creation window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. Interaction with the interface element 766 may provide for entering information, (e.g., title, location, compensation, etc.) about the requisition to be created. Interaction with each of the interface elements 768 _(i) may provide for entering qualifications/requirements of the requisition being created. The interface element 767 may display a size of the prospect pool for the requisition being created. The interface element 767 may be updated in real-time as the requirements for the requisition are inputted via the interface elements 768 and as new prospects are inputted into the electronic sourcing system. The prospect pool size information in interface element 767 may be used in determining the qualifications for the requisition as described, for example, with reference to FIGS. 11A and 11B.

FIG. 7I depicts an example prospect and event discovery window provided by an electronic sourcing management system. For ease and clarity of description, it is assumed a sourcing coordinator of Organization is viewing the window of FIG. 7I. The interface element 773 may comprise a list of events that are suggested for the Organization to attend. The suggestions may be generated based on, for example, analysis by the sourcing system of: Organization's profile, the events' profiles, subscriptions associated with the events' profiles, past events attended by Organization, prospects registered to attend the events, prospect pool size requirements of Organization's requisitions, and/or other organizations registered to attend the events. Each interface element 776 may correspond to one of the suggested events and may, in turn, comprise: an interface element 774 _(i) that links to the event's profile, an interface element 775 _(i) that gives a brief description of the organization and/or event.

The interface element 779 may comprise a list of people (e.g., prospects and/or sourcers) that are suggested to join Organization. The suggestions may be generated based on, for example, an analysis by the sourcing system of: Organization's profile, the peoples' profiles, profiles to which the people are subscribed, scores indicating compatibility between Organization and the people, and/or the people's abstract/résumé/CV information. Each interface element 780 _(i) may correspond to one of the suggested persons and may, in turn, comprise: an interface element 777 _(i) that links to the person's profile, and an interface element 778 _(i) that gives a brief description of the person.

The interface element 787 may provide a search tool for searching to discover event profiles meeting selected criteria (e.g., in a particular location and/or industry). Search/filter criteria may be entered via the interface element 788 and the results may be displayed in the interface element 781. The interface element 782 may enable subscribing to and/or registering for all (or a selected subset) of the events listed in the interface element 781. The interface element 783 may provide a search tool for searching to discover prospect and/or sourcer profiles meeting selected criteria (e.g., in a particular location and/or industry). Search/filter criteria may be entered via the interface element 784 and the results may be displayed in the interface element 785. The interface element 786 may enable subscribing to the profile(s) of all (or a selected subset) of the people listed in the interface element 785.

Any of the windows described with reference to FIGS. 7A-7I may, for example, be populated by pulling the underlying information from the database(s) 124 via an API and/or other interface. Any of the windows described with reference to FIGS. 5A-5E may, for example, be viewed on a prospect terminal 102, a sourcer terminal 128, or any other suitable computing device.

FIG. 8 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for matching prospects and organizations via an electronic sourcing management system. For ease and clarity of description, the process of FIG. 8 is described using two prospects and two organizations. The process, however, is applicable to any number of prospects and any number of organizations. The process begins with block 801 in which each of Organization A and Organization B register with the electronic sourcing system. In block 802, administrators of Organization A and Organization B create their respective profiles in the electronic sourcing system (e.g., using windows similar to the windows of FIGS. 5D and 6C). In block 803, employees/members of Organization A and employees/members of Organization B fill out questionnaires regarding their applicable attributes (e.g., personalities, preferences, and/or workplace culture).

In block 804, Prospect X and Prospect Y register with the electronic sourcing system. In block 805, Prospects X and Y create their respective profiles in the electronic sourcing system (e.g., using the window of FIG. 5D). In block 806, Prospects X and Y fill out questionnaires regarding their attributes (e.g., personalities and/or preferences). In block 807 compatibility scores S_(AX) (compatibility between A and X), S_(AY) (compatibility between A and Y), S_(BX) (compatibility between B and X), and S_(BY) (compatibility between A and X) are generated. The compatibility scores may be generated based on Organization A's profile, Organization B's profile, Prospect X's profile, Prospect Y's profile, the questionnaire responses of Organization A's employees/members, the questionnaire responses of Organization B's employees/members, Prospect X's responses to the questionnaire, and/or Prospect Y's responses to the questionnaire.

In block 808, for each compatibility score S_(mn), that is greater than a determined threshold, the electronic sourcing system may recommend Prospect m to Organization n and/or recommend Organization n to Prospect m.

FIG. 9 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for prospect recommendations via an electronic sourcing management system. The process begins with block 901 in which the electronic sourcing system autonomously searches the requisitions of organizations that are subscribed to Prospect A and the requisitions of organizations to which Prospect A is subscribed. For purposes of description, it is assumed Organization X is among such organizations. In block 902, the electronic sourcing system autonomously searches the profiles of prospects who are subscribed to Prospect A and of prospects to whom Prospect A is subscribed to identify prospects who match the requisition(s) discovered in block 901. For purposes of description, it is assumed Prospect B is among such prospects. In block 904, the search of block 903 reveals that Prospect B is a good fit for an open requisition of Organization X. In block 904, the electronic sourcing system prompts Prospect A as to whether she/he/it would like to recommend Prospect B for the requisition with Organization X. If Prospect A clicks or taps “yes,” then, in block 905, Prospect B is recommended to Organization X and visa-versa.

FIG. 10 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for prospect relationship management via an electronic sourcing management system. In block 1001, Prospect A interviews for an opportunity with Organization X, receives a favorable evaluation, but ultimately is not chosen for the opportunity. In block 1002, Prospect A's information (e.g., abstract/résumé/CV, interviewer assessments, etc.) is stored in Organization X's prospect tracking system (PTS), which is integrated with the electronic sourcing system. In block 1003, the electronic system periodically and/or occasionally sends messages to (or prompts a sourcer to send messages to) Prospect A to keep Prospect A informed as to the activities of Organization X and/or to gauge whether Prospect A is still available and/or interested in opportunities with Organization X. For example, such messages may prompt Prospect A to reply if she/he/it is still available and/or interested. Upon receiving such a reply, the electronic sourcing system may automatically parse the reply and update Prospect A's status in the PTS. Additionally or alternatively, such messages may include questionnaires and/or fields via which Prospect A can update her/his/its information and such information can be automatically parsed and updated in the PTS upon receiving the reply. Such messages may be via the prospect's profile in the electronic sourcing system and/or via conventional email. Where the prospect has a profile in the electronic sourcing system, changes she/he/it makes to her/his/it profile may automatically be updated in Organization X's PTS. The updated information may be used to continually compare Prospect A against Organization X's open requisitions, as such requisitions are opened.

FIG. 11 depicts an example sourcing management system that houses prospect tracking systems for multiple organizations. Shown in FIG. 11 are Organization X's enterprise network 1101, Organization Y's enterprise network 1105, and a network 1103 of a sourcing service provider. Each of the networks 1101, 1103, and 1105 may comprise end-systems (e.g., servers, desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones) and network “plumbing” (e.g., routers, switches, cabling, fiber, etc.). The network 1103 may comprise one or more servers 1111.

The server(s) 1111 may comprise: a processing circuit 1107 that may be similar to the processing circuit 120 described above with reference to FIG. 1; a networking circuit 1108 that may be similar to the networking circuit 118 described above with reference to FIG. 1, a memory 1109 circuit that may be similar to the memory circuit 122 described above with reference to FIG. 1; server application 1110 which may be similar to the server application 126 described above with reference to FIG. 1; and prospect tracking system (PTS) front-ends 1106, each of which may be similar to the database application 124 described above with reference to FIG. 1.

Each of the PTS front-ends may enable access to a particular organization's sourcing data. The data of different organizations (stored, for example, in memory 1109) may be kept securely separated to comply with privacy policies/regulations. Data may, however, be shared among organizations and/or shared with an organization-agnostic centralized repository (which may be in memory 1109) after having sensitive and/or private data stripped in compliance with applicable privacy policies/regulations.

FIG. 12 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for projecting sourcing-related information using an electronic sourcing management system. The process begins with sourcing data of multiple organizations' PTSs being stored in the electronic sourcing system (e.g., in memory 1109). In block 1202, identifying, private, and/or other sensitive information about the prospects in the various organizations' PTSs is removed and the resulting privacy-cleaned information is stored in the electronic sourcing system (forming an “aggregate” or “cross-organizational” PTS). The information stored in the aggregate PTS may be analyzed (e.g., autonomously and/or with user input) by the electronic sourcing system to determine various sourcing metrics. Examples of such metrics include: number of opportunities filled, number of opportunities projected to be filled in a future time frame, prospect pool sizes used for filling past opportunities, current prospect pool sizes, current compensation, and projected compensation for some future time frame. The various metrics calculated from the information in the aggregate PTS may be categorized such as by, for example, industry, geographic region, experience level, compensation range, and/or other characteristics or attributes. In block 1206, the information in the aggregate PTS and/or the metrics generate from such information may be used for generating sourcing-related projections or guidelines such as, for example: compensation that should be paid/offered to remain competitive, necessary prospect pool sizes for filling opportunities, which college majors to fund, which college majors to increase enrollment, etc.

FIG. 13 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for matching prospect and requisitions over multiple entities. The process begins with block 1304 in which multiple organizations' PTSs are stored in the electronic sourcing system (e.g., in memory 1109). In block 1305, Prospect A creates a profile in the electronic sourcing system (e.g., by having her/his/its information scanned in at an event). In block 1306, the information from Prospect A's profile is copied to each organization's PTS. In block 1307, Prospect A is assessed for compatibility with multiple open requisitions across multiple ones of the organizations.

In block 1308, Prospect A is notified of requisitions for which she/he/it meets the requirements. Such a notification of block 1308 may additionally (or alternatively) comprise a score indicating Prospect A's compatibility with the associated organization.

For requisitions that are open for Prospect A to submit an application, Prospect A may be provided with an interface element via which she/he/it can apply for the requisitions, as, for example, described above with reference to block 576 in FIG. 5E.

The notification may additionally (or alternatively) comprise information about how Prospect A may be connected to the associated organization in the electronic sourcing system. For example, Prospect A may be notified of a chain of one or more prospect and/or organization subscriptions and/or past interactions that ultimately lead to the associated organization and/or one of its sourcers. Prospect A may then attempt to seek recommendations for the requisition from one or more of the persons or organizations along that chain. Such information may be useful to Prospect A where one or more of the requisitions are “invite only” (e.g., only to prospects who have been recommended by someone sufficiently connected to the organization). For example, Prospect A may be notified that she/he/it meets the requirements for one of Organization X's requisitions, that Prospect A is a good cultural fit for Organization X, that Prospect A recently interacted with Prospect B at an event and that Prospect B is subscribed-to by Organization X. Accordingly, Prospect A may try to cultivate his/her/its relationship with Prospect B in an attempt to get Prospect B to recommend Prospect A to Organization X via the electronic sourcing system.

In block 1309, the organization(s) for which Prospect A was determined, per block 1307, to meet the requirements of an open requisition may be notified of Prospect A's fit for the requisition and may be notified of a chain of subscriptions and/or interactions that lead to Prospect A.

FIG. 14 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for generating an application in an electronic sourcing management system. Various blocks of the process of FIG. 14 are described with reference to example interface elements of windows 1602 and 1632 shown in FIGS. 16A and 16B.

The process begins with block 1402 in which an organization (“O”) creates a profile and logs into the electronic sourcing management system. In block 1404, if O desires to generate an application template from a pre-defined application generated external to the electronic sourcing management system, then the process then advances to block 1406 in which an administrator of O's account in the electronic sourcing management system uploads such an external application. Next, in block 1408, the external application is parsed and the system attempts to map fields of the external application to prospect profile fields in the electronic management system. For example, a “name” field of the external application may be mapped to a name field that stores the information presented in interface element 502 of FIG. 5A, a “contact information” field of the external application may be mapped to one or more prospect profile fields that store the information presented in interface element 504, one or more “education” fields of the external application may be mapped to one or more prospect profiles fields that store the information presented in interface element 517, etc.

In block 1410, the proposed mapping determined in block 1408 is presented to the administrator. In block 1412, the administrator makes any necessary or desired modifications to the mapping and then accepts the mapping. Referring to FIG. 16A, for example, each interface element 1606 corresponds to a field detected in the external application (which may also correspond to a field in O's PTS) and each interface element 1608 corresponds to a field of prospect profiles in electronic sourcing management system. The fields corresponding to elements 1606 a-1606 c have been mapped, respectively, to the fields corresponding to elements 1608 a-1608 c. Each of elements 1610 a-1610 c may enable the administrator to accept a respective one of the mappings. Each of elements 1612 a-1612 c may bring up an interface for modifying a respective one of the mappings. Where the external application fields do not have the same name as fields of O's PTS, separate interface elements may be presented for the administrator to map the external application fields to PTS fields. The mapping to PTS fields may be used when uploading submitted applications from the prospect sourcing management system to O's PTS.

Returning to FIG. 14, in block 1416, the system presents an interface via which the administrator can generate or select additional fields to be included in the application template. For example, the system may display various fields that were detected in the external application but were not mapped to any prospect profile field, and may give the administrator the opportunity to add such fields as custom fields in the application template. For example, referring again to FIG. 16A, each interface element 1616 may corresponds to a field detected in the external application (which may also correspond to a field in O's PTS). Interaction with elements 1618 a-1618 c may bring up an interface for selecting a prospect profile field that the administrator desires to map, respectively, to the external application fields, or PTS fields, corresponding to elements 1616 a-1616 c. Each of the elements 1620 a-1620 c may enable marking a respective one of the fields corresponding to elements 1616 a-1616 c as a custom field (e.g., if the field corresponding to element 1616 a cannot be adequately mapped to a prospect profile field, then selection of interface element 1620 a may mark the field corresponding to element 1616 a as a custom field). Each of the elements 1622 a-1622 c may enable deleting a respective one of the fields corresponding to elements 1616 a-1616 c (e.g., if the admin does not want the field corresponding to element 1616 a to be part of the application template, then selection of interface element 1622 a may remove the field). Interface element 1624 may enable entry of custom fields that do not correspond to a field in the external application. For example, the administrator may select interface element 1626 to bring up a picker that enables picking a field from O's PTS. After picking a field from the PTS, selection of element 1628 may bring up an interface for entering the information to be displayed on the template (e.g., “why do you want to work for Organization O?”) and then selection of the interface element 1630 may bring up an interface for configuring the format of the prospect's entry to the custom field (e.g., text limited to 500 characters).

Returning again to FIG. 14, in block 1418, a summary of the fields to be included in the application template is presented to the administrator for acceptance or for going back to make additional modifications. Once the administrator accepts the list of fields, in block 1420, the administrator is presented with an interface for formatting a print layout of applications generated based on the application template. In this manner, in instances where organization O desires printed or pdf (for example) versions of submitted applications, the system can deliver such versions formatted according to organization O's preferences, while still maintaining the raw application data unattached to any particular formatting. In block 1422, O's application template is saved in the electronic sourcing management system for use when prospects want to submit an application to O via the electronic sourcing management system.

Returning to block 1404, if organization O does not want to start with a pre-defined external application, but instead wants to build an application template from scratch, or from one or more templates internal to the electronic management sourcing system, then the steps advance to block 1414. Where internal templates are provided, they may be categorized by various characteristics or attributes, for example, industry, college major, location, university attended, etc. Where the application template is to be generated from scratch, the administrator may be presented with an interface for selecting individual prospect profile fields. Referring to FIG. 16B, for example, interaction with element 1636 a may bring up a picker enabling the administrator to select a prospect profile field from a list of prospect profile fields. After picking the prospect profile field via interface element 1636 a, the administrator may interact with a corresponding element 1638 a to select a field of O's PTS that should map to the field selected with element 1636 a. This mapping may be used for uploading application data to O's PTS.

In an example implementation, O may use the steps of FIG. 14 to generate a single organization-wide template and/or may complete the steps multiple times for multiple templates (e.g., different templates for different business units, different requisitions, etc.).

FIG. 15 depicts a flowchart illustrating an example process for a prospect to concurrently fill out and submit applications to multiple organizations and/or for multiple requisitions. Various blocks of the process of FIG. 14 are described with reference to the example interface elements of FIG. 17.

The process begins with block 1502 in which a prospect “C” creates a profile and logs into the electronic sourcing system. Next, in block 1504, C browses organization profiles and/or requisitions in the electronic sourcing management system (e.g., using interface elements shown in FIG. 5E), and selects the organization(s) and/or requisition(s) to which C would like to apply. Once C has finished such selecting, in block 1506, an interface showing a composite/aggregate application that encompasses application templates for all of the selected organizations/requisitions. Referring briefly to FIG. 17, an example of such an interface is shown as window 1702. In an example implementation, the aggregate/composite application may provide a break-down of what information/fields are required by each of the selected organizations/requisitions. For example, element 1702 comprises fields which are common to the application templates of all of the selected organizations/requisitions, element 1706 comprises prospect profile fields which are common to the application templates of only a subset of the selected organizations/requisitions, element 1710 comprises custom fields that are common to the application template(s) of only a first subset of the selected organizations/requisitions, and element 1718 comprises custom fields that are common to the application template(s) of only a second subset of the selected organizations/requisitions. Although the example depicts a scenario where prospect C has selected two organizations, any number may be selected and any number of groupings may be presented in the aggregate/composite application.

Returning to FIG. 15, in block 1508, fields of the composite/aggregate application which map to candidate profile fields are auto-populated by the electronic recruiting management system such that the candidate does not need to fill it out even once, let alone separately for each organization's/requisition's application template. For example, each of the interface elements 1704 and 1708 corresponds to a respective candidate profile field and is auto-populated with information from candidate C's profile in the electronic recruiting management system.

In block 1510, fields of the composite/aggregate application that do not map to a prospect profile field are presented for filling in by prospect C. For example, referring again to FIG. 17, interface element 1712 corresponds to a custom field required for organization 1's application template. If prospect C desires to provide such information, C can interact with element 1714 to bring up an interface for providing the requested information. If prospect C does not wish to provide the requested information, interacting with element 1716 can remove organization 1 from the composite/aggregate application. Elements 1720, 1722, and 1724 are similar to elements 1712, 1714, and 1716, respectively, but for a custom field required by organization 2.

Back to FIG. 15, in block 1512, prospect C fills in and/or deletes custom fields required by one or more of the selected organizations/requisitions. Once prospect C is finished filling-in the composite/aggregate application, in block 1514, prospect C interacts with the interface (e.g., clicks element 1726) to submit the aggregate/composition application. In an example implementation, statistics pertaining to the removal of organizations/requisitions because of the presence of custom fields may be tracked and reported back to the respective organizations such that they can learn which questions may be responsible for low volume of applications.

In block 1516, the information from the composite/aggregate application may be uploaded to the respective organizations/requisitions. The information from the composite/aggregate application may be uploaded directly to the organizations' prospect tracking systems using the field mappings.

In block 1518, where print layout settings have been input by/for the selected organizations/requisitions, the information from the composite/aggregate application may be parsed and inserted into formatted documents which may then be saved to prospect C's account (e.g., if prospect C may later need a paper copy), uploaded to repositories associated with the selected organizations/requisitions, emailed to appropriate representatives (e.g., human resources, engineering, sales, purchasing, etc.) for the selected organizations/requisitions, and/or the like.

In block 1520, prospect C's profile may be updated to reflect the submitted application. For example, a private “application tracking” interface may be made accessible where prospect C can review the applications she/he/it has submitted through the electronic sourcing management system, get updates as to the status of the application, send communications to the corresponding sourcers, etc. In an example implementation, information about submitted applications may also be used for generating recommendations to prospect C as to other organizations and/or requisitions to which prospect C should apply. For example, when new organizations/requisitions are similar to organizations/requisitions that prospect C has previously applied to become available in the system, a message, popup, etc. may be provided to prospect C recommending that she/he/it apply to such requisitions/organizations.

In an example implementation, saved submitted applications may also be parsed and used for auto-populating future applications. For example, custom fields of an aggregate/composite application being filled out may be compared to custom fields of previously-submitted applications and, where the custom fields are determined to be the same, the system may auto-populate the custom fields of the new application (which the prospect could confirm or replace, as desired).

FIG. 18 depicts a flowchart for handling references in an application submitted via the electronic sourcing management system. In block 1802, Prospect C fills out a composite/aggregate application (e.g., as described with respect to FIG. 15 above). One or more of the organizations to which prospect C desires to apply via the composite/aggregate application may require prospect C to provide references. Accordingly, in block 1804, one or more interface elements are presented for prospect C to provide his/her/its references. In an example implementation, such an interface may comprise a picker for selecting people who are subscribed to prospect C (“C's subscribers”) and/or to whom C is subscribed (“C's subscribed”). The interface may enable selecting one set of references for the entire composite/aggregate application, or selecting different references for different organizations and/or requisitions associated with the composite/aggregate application. In block 1806, the selected references are notified (e.g., via a messaging feature of the electronic sourcing management system) of prospect C's request to use them as references for one or more applications. In block 1808, if a letter of recommendation or completion of a fillable form is requested of the reference(s), then the reference can fill the form and/or upload the reference via an interface of the electronic sourcing management system. In block 1810, once the reference have accepted and, if necessary, uploaded or filled out the necessary forms, the completed application is submitted to the organizations requiring the references.

In an example implementation, references may have pre-approved (e.g., via a configuration or setting in their profiles) prospect C to use them as a reference. This may, for example, prevent introducing delays for applying to organizations which will not accept an application without references.

Accordingly, the present method and/or system may be realized in hardware, software, or a combination of hardware and software. The present method and/or system may be realized in a centralized fashion in at least one computing system, or in a distributed fashion where different elements are spread across several interconnected computing systems. Any kind of computing system or other apparatus adapted for carrying out the methods described herein is suited. A typical combination of hardware and software may be a general-purpose computing system with a program or other code that, when being loaded and executed, interface elements the computing system such that it carries out the methods described herein.

The present method and/or system may also be embedded in a machine-readable, computer program product, which comprises all the features enabling the implementation of the methods described herein, and which when loaded in a computer system is able to carry out these methods. Computer program in the present context means any expression, in any language, code or notation, of a set of instructions intended to cause a system having an information processing capability to perform a particular function either directly or after either or both of the following: a) conversion to another language, code or notation; or b) reproduction in a different material form. The computer program product may be provided, for example, on optical and/or magnetic storage and/or may be downloadable via network such as the Internet.

While the present method and/or system has been described with reference to certain implementations, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the scope of the present method and/or system. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the present disclosure without departing from its scope. Therefore, it is intended that the present method and/or system not be limited to the particular implementations disclosed, but that the present method and/or system will include all implementations falling within the scope of the appended claims. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A electronic system configured to: host prospect profiles for a plurality of prospect; host organization profiles for a plurality of organizations; store an application template for each of said plurality of organizations; generate an aggregate application that is based on: a first one of said plurality of application templates corresponding to a first organization; and a second one of said plurality of application templates corresponding to a second organization; and perform the following in response to a prospect submitting said aggregate application via an interface of said electronic system: extract data from a first set of fields of said aggregate application, said first set of fields corresponding to said first one of said plurality of application templates; upload said data from said first set of fields to an prospect tracking system of said first organization; extract data from a second set of fields of said aggregate application, said second set of fields corresponding to said second one of said plurality of application templates; and upload said data from said second set of fields to an prospect tracking system of said second organization.
 2. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein: said upload to said prospect tracking system of said first organization is based on a mapping, stored in said electronic system, between said first set of fields of said aggregate application and a set of fields of said prospect tracking system of said first organization; and said upload to said prospect tracking system of said second organization is based on a mapping between said second set of fields of said aggregate application and a set of fields of said prospect tracking system of said computer system of said first organization.
 3. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein said generation of said aggregate application comprises: parsing an externally-generated application to identify fields of said externally-generated application; and generating a mapping between one or more of said identified fields of said externally-generated application and one or more fields of said prospect profiles.
 4. The electronic system of claim 3, wherein said electronic system is configured to generate a user interface that: displays said mapping; and enables a user to accept or modify said mapping.
 5. The electronic system of claim 4, wherein said display of said mapping comprises display of unmapped fields, said unmapped fields comprising those of said identified fields of said externally-generated application that have not been mapped to said one or more fields of said prospect profiles.
 6. The electronic system of claim 5, wherein said user interface enables a user to select one or more of said unmapped fields to be included as custom fields in said aggregate application.
 7. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein said generation of said aggregate application comprises: mapping said fields of said prospect tracking system of said first organization to one or more fields of said prospect profiles; and mapping said fields of said prospect tracking system of said second organization to one or more fields of said prospect profiles.
 8. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein said generation of said aggregate application comprises: generating a mapping between one or more fields of said prospect tracking system of said first organization and one or more fields of said prospect profiles; and generating a mapping between one or more fields of said prospect tracking system of said second organization and one or more fields of said prospect profiles.
 9. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein said generation of said aggregate application is in response to a prospect selecting, via a user interface generated by said electronic system, said first organization and said second organization for inclusion in said aggregate application.
 10. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein said electronic system is configured to auto-populate fields of said aggregate application with information from fields in said prospect profiles.
 11. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein said electronic system is configured to auto-populate fields of said aggregate application with information from previously-filled-out aggregate applications.
 12. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein: said electronic system is configured to present said aggregate application in the form of a plurality of interface elements corresponding to a plurality of fields of the aggregate application; and for one or more of said interface elements, said electronic system indicates whether corresponding information is part of an application template of said first organization, and whether said corresponding information is part of an application template of said second organization.
 13. The electronic system of claim 1, wherein in instances that said aggregate application requires a prospect to provide a name of a person to act as a reference, said electronic system is configured to generate a user interface via which said prospect can select from among said prospect's subscribers and persons to which said prospect is subscribed.
 14. The electronic system of claim 13 wherein, in response to said prospect selecting one of said subscribers or persons to which said prospect is subscribed, sending a notification of a reference request to a profile associated with said selected subscriber or person to which said prospect is subscribed.
 15. The electronic system of claim 14, wherein said electronic system is configured to: generate an interface via which said subscriber or person to which said prospect is subscribed can input a recommendation for said prospect; upload said recommendation to said prospect tracking system of said first organization; and upload said recommendation to said prospect tracking system of said second organization. 